Baseball and Love Don't Make a Perfect Recipe
by kitkatieisme
Summary: Benny was…curious? Yeah, that was it. Curious and very interested. He was spying on the family that was moving into house three houses down from him when he spotted a girl. Not just any girl either. A Dodgers girl? What happens when a girl can play better than the boys?
1. The Introductions

**A/N:** I love The Sandlot, and I love Benny, so if I'm honest, this is my fantasy. In this story, the plot is the same except for the fact that there is an OC. There will be romance, sorry if you don't like that, but there will also be friendship and baseball, so enjoy! And yes, coincidentally, the girl owns the Dodgers. Just a random thought that occurred to me. It will come into play a lot. Just go with it.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own The Sandlot, but I wish that I did. The only thing I own is Kitty Reynolds.

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Prologue:<strong>

Benny was…curious? Yeah, that was it. Curious and very, very interested. He was…"spying" on the family that was moving into the huge house three houses down from him when he spotted the girl. Not just any girl; a beautiful girl with lively green eyes and soft, brown hair and long, long tan legs. Benny would be lying if he said he didn't have a little crush on her already. He was excited to start school with her on Monday.

She was sitting lazily on top of a box she was supposed to be moving, absentmindedly tossing a baseball up and down. Coming from any other girl, this would have surprised him, but word on the street is that this girl's uncle owned a team in the MLB! Apparently, she moved from New York when he purchased the team. Not just any team either. No, he owned the Dodgers. So naturally Benny decided to scout her out. Y'know…just in case…

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><p><strong>Chapter 1:<strong>

**_Normal POV_**

"Uncle Dan!" she screamed loudly.

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Do I have to move these boxes in?" she questioned him, a sickly sweet tone to her voice.

There came a loud sigh from the house. "Yes, you do, because I am a little busy at the moment, hon." _With work_, she added to herself. She was sure. He was probably on some important call with one of the players on his team. "Just move the boxes in, Kitty!"

"But they're HEAVY!" complained Kitty, but she moved to do as she was told anyway. Just as she was getting started, she spotted 9 boys running down the street. They noticed the trouble she was having with one of the heavier boxes, and stopped.

"You alright?" asked one of the boys, clearly the leader. He looked Hispanic with dark skin and hair. He was handsome, for sure, but Kitty refused to think like that.

She debated whether or not to let them help her. "Umm…" she started, then dropped the box. "Shit," she muttered.

"I think that's a 'yes,'" the boy called back.

**_Kitty POV_**

I bent down to pick up the stuff I had dropped, my face burning, and the boys gathered around to help me. A chubby kid picked up a picture of me and my former baseball team and inspected it.

"That's you?" he asked, clearly confused.

"No," I said sarcastically. "That's Babe Ruth, of course."

The boys laughed, then started helping me move the boxes. Once the job was done, they smiled at me. "Hey, what's your name, anyways?" one of them asked.

"Kitty," I replied. "Kitty Reynolds."

"Kitty?"

"Yeah. What's it to ya?" I asked heatedly. I hated this part, when people questioned my name. I happen to LOVE my name.

"Nothing. It's a nice name." Hmph. Well we agree on something. "I'm Benny. This is Ham, Squints, Timmy, Tommy, Yeah-Yeah, Kenny, Bertram, and Smalls."

"Nice to meet ya," I told them, and they chorused a "hello." Benny turned back at me. "You any good at baseball?" he asked.

Any good, I thought. If only they knew. I grew up playing with major league players. Of course I'm good. But I didn't say any of that. Instead I said, "Why, Benny? You doubt it?"

"Well," spoke up Ham, "in general, girls aren't very good. But you're pretty so I'll give you a chance."

"Gee, thanks. But I bet I can whip your candyass any day of the week." I told him matter-of-factly. The boys whooped and shouted "Score one for the new girl!" and "She got you there, Ham!" I smiled to myself, but kept a cool personality on the outside. I was really good at masking my emotions. Had to be.

"Oh really?" asked Ham patronizingly. I just nodded, full of a quiet confidence that he couldn't take away. "Fine." He announced a challenge. "Tomorrow, at 9 AM, at the sandlot."

"Fine. Hope you're ready."

"I was born ready."

"Mmm-hmmm. Right."

The boys laughed and threw their gloves at Ham as they turned at walked away. "See you tomorrow," I called sweetly. Then I walked inside. I checked the air for any traces of alcohol, then, sensing none, ran to my room. Tomorrow would be an interesting day.

And I couldn't wait.

**_Benny POV_**

"I bet that Ham will win by more than 5 runs," announced Yeah-Yeah. Ham pumped his fist at the vote of confidence.

"Really?" I asked. "My money's on Kitty. I've seen pictures of her batting with Dodger players. I think that she'll win." Ham pouted.

"Fine then," said Ham. "I hope your wrong."

"I'm right, though," I grinned cockily. I always tell the boys I'm right.

"I'll bet on that," announced Yeah-Yeah. "Two dollars."

I thought about it for a while, weighing the pros and cons, then held out his hand for Yeah-Yeah to shake. "Alright," he said. "If Kitty wins, you pay me, and if Ham wins, I'll pay you." Yeah-Yeah shook his hand grinning from ear to ear.

"Hey, why are you so confident anyways?" asked Smalls. "It's not like you've ever seen her play."

Yeah-Yeah laughed. "That's exactly it. I've seen Ham play, and he's pretty good, but Benny here is making a blind bet."

"The best kind!" I declared.

"And he's betting on a girl. So I'm gong to win." I just shook my head. He could easily be wrong about that. Kitty was pretty badass from what I could tell. I honestly believed that she would win.

"Fine. Believe what you want," I told him. And so we went to the diner, and clinched the deal with milkshakes. Tomorrow would be so much fun. And I'd be two dollars richer!

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><p>How about pressing that lovely review button there?<p>

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	2. The Game

**AN: Second chapter, finally. Sorry about the wait, but I wanted to make it the best it could be for my lovely readers!**

**Taylor Swift and Sandlot Lover: **Thanks so much! And yeah, Benny's a sweetheart! You are my first reviewer! Yay! Oh, and I love your username. Taylor Swift is, like, my fave! And obviously, I like the sandlot...

**Heyheyhey: **Thank you! And not quite the first reviewer, but you were close. I love you anyways!

**Ilivluv: **Thanks, and I'm sorry for not updating! I hope you found a way to cope without my wonderful story! JK ;) Also, I was planning on that. It should start in the next chapter...

**Sarah: **Thanks, I hope so! I will, don't worry!

**Olivia:** Thank you so much! I hope you will love it!

**Jacobs little sister J: **I did! Just for you, too!**  
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><p><strong>Kitty POV<strong>

The next morning, I slammed my hand down on my loud and annoying alarm clock (that, for some strange reason, I had set for a Sunday morning…I don't know why) at 6 AM and I just lay awake for a while wondering what on earth I had gotten myself into.

If I was being perfectly honest, I had never really liked playing baseball-I just liked watching it-but I had learned how to play from the Dodgers and was pretty good. In fact, I DESPISED playing-I got sick of it after playing for forever-but Ham had just made me so MAD with his cockiness and the way he was so sure that girls couldn't play baseball, so I challenged him. Right then, I promised myself that I would set things straight with the boys today.

So I daydreamed until 7:30, and then grabbed some breakfast. Then I searched through boxes until I found my baseball gear. At 8:55, while I was fitting my cleats, my doorbell rang. First, I jumped, startled. Then I cringed, worried that the bell might wake my uncle (who was, by all means, not a morning person) but Uncle Dan didn't stir.

When I opened the door, I was surprised, albeit pleasantly, to find the one and only Benny Rodriguez at my door. "Shit, Rodriguez. Knock next time. We don't need my uncle to wake up. He's nasty in the morning." He laughed.

"Let's go," he smiled.

"I was just on my way," I replied, still a bit dazed by his sudden appearance. I scribbled a quick note, telling Uncle Dan that I was off playing baseball, and we left. We stopped to pick up Smalls, and then we were on our way. When we got there, everyone else was already standing in the middle of the field.

"Alright," announced Ham. "Here's what's going to happen. DeNunez, that one over there," he said, pointing to a dark-skinned boy chewing his gum loudly and tossing his baseball up and down, "is going to pitch us both 10 pitches-the same difficulty pitches, of course-and you and I are going to take turns hitting. When you're not hitting, you sit over there in the dugout. Anything hit over the fence is a home run, but you have to get another ball, and at the end, you add up the number of bases you ran. Everyone else is playing outfield. Okay?"

"Yeah," I said, somehow managing to keep up with his explanation. "Let's play ball! You want to go first, or shall I?"

Ham smirked before gleefully declaring, "Ladies first!"

And with that, I took my place and held my bat the way I had been taught. I made a connection with the ball on my first swing, and the baseball flew. The boys jumped for it, but they couldn't get it. It flew straight over the fence.

I jogged around the bases, high-fiving Benny giddily as I passed third, and smirking at a shocked Ham. I tossed Kenny another ball I had brought, not wanting to waste time to go get the ball, and the game continued, though.

"Alright," said Ham. "Lucky shot."

I raised an eyebrow. "Was it? Cuz I thought it was my skill. I could be wrong."

"And you are," he agreed.

But I wasn't. I hit it over the fence again and again.

I mostly got home runs, because I was fast. Even when I didn't hit the ball over the fence, I got three or four bases because I sprinted well. Ham mostly got three bases, and at the end I had won!

I turned to Ham and cocked an eyebrow and put on a mock-sweet face. "Luck?"

**Benny POV**

It was almost comical to watch all of the boys' heads swivel to Yeah-Yeah. Kitty stared at us like we were crazy for a second, but Yeah-Yeah paid up. Kitty laughed, while Yeah-Yeah looked at her sheepishly for betting against her.

"Alright," yelled Ham. "She's good," he admitted grudgingly. "Amazing. But, there's only 9 spots on the field. And with her AND Smalls, that's 10. So what now?"

I stopped laughing. He had a point. "Well," I started hesitantly, but Kitty cut me off. "It don't matter," she told us. "You boys play. I don't much like playing. I'd rather just watch."

Ham looked insulted. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. You don't like playing, but you still beat me?" he asked. She nodded.

"I had the chance to learn how, and I took it, but I never really fell in love with the sport. Not the way you boys did," she explained. I was shocked, to say the least. I mean, how could you not love baseball? Maybe its more of a guy thing…

"But," she continued, "since I beat you, you have to let me stay and watch. I like to watch baseball, and this is the best place to get my baseball fill, idn't it? Those Little League boys ain't very nice." She made a face.

Well we agree on something.

"Yeah yeah," said Yeah-Yeah. "You can watch. And I'm sorry for betting against you," he added.

"You wanted to side with your friend," replied Kitty. "I get that."

"So you don't blame me?"

"Nope nope!" she laughed, and I couldn't help but laugh with her. "So go play. I need some entertainment!" she told us.

We all stood and saluted her at once. "Yes ma'am!" we chorused mockingly. And we took the field. This was going to be a very fun summer. I can just tell.

**Kitty POV**

It was starting to get dark by the time the boys were finished. "Hey!" I called to them. "Dinner?"

They all jogged over once they comprehended that dinner meant food. "Where?"

"The diner. I'm paying," I told them. After a moment, they (attempting to act like gentlemen) started to protest, but I shut them up. My uncle gives me 10 dollars a week, and right now I had 20. "I'm paying," I repeated firmly.

The boys easily gave in, and we headed off. But once we got there, they stopped short.

"Ugh," they all groaned at once, except for Smalls. He looked about as lost as I was. But then I spotted 9 boys all dressed in Tigers uniforms.

"Little League?" I guessed. Benny nodded while the rest of the boys kept glaring. One of them spotted us, and his lips turned up in a cruel smile. "Come on," I told them, leading them inside. "We look like morons just standing here." Reluctantly, they followed. I sat at a table that was the farthest away from the Tigers' and I started ordering.

"Don't look now," muttered Benny. So naturally, I turned my head. Phillips and the rest of his team were walking towards us, and they didn't look too nice.

"Ah, bitches," I murmured.

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><p>And that's it! Virtual cookies for reviewers!<p> 


	3. Never Hit A Girl

A/N: Another chapter!

Heyheyhey: You know exactly what I'm thinking don't you. I had already planned that! Am I that predictable? ;) Maybe great minds think alike, huh? DRAMA!:) And thanks for reviewing! You're the best! And don't worry about typos :).

Ilivluv: Haha that's what I was thinking. I'll make her insult him more now that you've requested it though. Thank you for the review!

Sarah: Yeah, she'll play more, but not much. Remember? She doesn't like it too much. Thank you so much!

jacobs little sister j: Oh, good for her! Girls should be allowed to do whatever they want! I like your friend Jackie. Thanks for reviewing and reading! I love reviewers!

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><p>Kitty POV<p>

Everyone glared at Phillips as he sat on the table and looked me up and down. I suddenly had the urge to bash his skull in with a baseball bat, an urge that only intensified when he actually opened his mouth. "You're awful pretty," he told me. Then, looking at my jean shorts, he winked. "Damn sexy, too. Why are you hanging around these Sandlot losers? Don't you want to watch some REAL baseball?"

"I was," I told them quietly, trying to contain my anger. "They're better than you will ever be. Now get your ass off of my table. I eat there."

"I'm actually kinda comfortable here," he smirked. "I think I'll stay." And with that, he reached out and began tracing his hands up and down my arms. The pervert. I checked to see if the waitress was watching, or anyone else that might get us in trouble, then grabbed his arm and flipped him off of the table. The Sandlot boys laughed and high-fived me (proud, I hope) while the Tigers looked like they were having second thoughts about me. Then Phillips stood back up.

"Get her," he told his boys. I was confused, which distracted me enough so that two huge boys grabbed my arms, and two others grabbed my legs. Then they carried me over to the other side of the diner, with me kicking and screaming the whole way.

The other people in the diner looked at us, and apparently kidnapping is pretty normal here, because they didn't do anything about it.

The good news is: they set me down.

The bad news is: I was surrounded.

Where the hell were the boys?

Hello? Damsel in distress here!

Phillips glared at me. "You shouldn't have done that." I scoffed.

"Aw. Why not? Did I hurt poor little Phillips' feelings?" I mocked. Apparently that was a bad choice, because he reached back his hand and slapped me across the face.

"Feeling like listening now?" he growled. No sooner had he gotten in my face had he been thrown backwards. Benny had (finally) crossed the bar in a flash. Low and fierce, he snarled, "You never hit a girl. Ever"

Benny POV

When the boys picked Kitty up, we were all pretty much frozen in shock, wondering what the hell just happened. But when he drew back his hand, I snapped out of it.

We all ran across the diner, running into people and jumping over tables, and I got there first. Without thinking, I grabbed the back of his _prestigious_ little uniform and I pulled him back.

"You never hit a girl. Ever," I told him, surprised that even Phillips would sink that low. It was accepted by society that you don't hit girls, but Phillips went ahead anyways. "Now get out," I snapped, and to my bewilderment, they listened. They ran outside and hopped on their bicycles, pedaling madly.

The boys were looking at me weird. "What?"

They exchanged glances, smirking about something, before Kenny said, "Nothing. I'm hungry. Let's eat."

When we got back to the table, the Dodgers game was on. The Dodgers were ahead by a whole lot, which I thought was great. I turned to tell Kitty about her team, but when I glanced at her, she was staring at the television with disappointed eyes, like she was sad about something. "No," she seemed to be saying to herself. "Why do you always win?"

I didn't know what on earth was wrong with Kitty, though, so I just turned around and watched the Dodgers win the game.

Kitty POV

Those damn Dodgers just had to win again. I looked at the boys, who were celebrating the win, not knowing what this meant. I paid the bill, and then walked out of the diner, completely invisible to Benny and the rest of them who were clinking their glasses together cheerfully.

I ran home as fast as I could, hoping to catch my uncle early. You see, when his team wins, he celebrates with his friends. With drinks. And when he drinks he gets drunk. And when he gets drunk, he tends to beat me because he don't know what the hell he's doing. My uncle loves me to death, and would never beat me if he weren't drunk, though, so I don't tell anyone.

Luckily, he's still pretty much sober when I get to my house. I run up to my room, yelling hello as I pass him. I grab some clothes, a pillow, and some food. I yell to my uncle some nonsense I don't even understand about a sleepover and I run out the door.

Once I'm out the door, though, I panic. I don't have a clue where to go. Back in New York, I had friends to sleep over with who figured out what was going on, and dozens of hiding places in the city. Here, my only friends were boys, and I had a feeling that not many of their mothers would take kindly to a girl sleeping over unexplained. So I let my senses take over, and I'm at the sandlot before I know where I'm going.

At the sandlot, I see a big, welcoming, semi-comfortable looking tree house. Perfect. I climb the ladder, put my stuff down and I try to go to sleep, but as I'm laying in the dark, my thoughts wander.

I think of everything that's happened the last two days, and how I'm already so close to the boys and how I've made a rivalry with the Tigers and how Benny saved me. Benny…just the thought of him makes my heart beat a little faster. I tell myself I don't like him, though. It wouldn't be fair. What kind of boy would like a messed-up bruised brat like me? I can't get my hopes up, but at the same time, I can't help it. My thoughts filled with Benny's beautiful face, I drift off to sleep.

I wake up to see a face hovering above my own. It's Benny Rodriguez. Shit.

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><p>Yeah, so Benny got his David Durango moment...review please!<p>

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	4. Explanations and a ShortTerm Plan

**A/N: Heh heh. Long time no see huh? Look, I'm sorry. I've had a lot going on recently between finals and getting ready for my school trip to DC and New York and completely stressing out and having writers block. To those of you who are still following this story: I LOVE YOU! YOU'RE THE BEST!  
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**_Anyways..._  
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**Olivia: **Thank you! More has been written!**  
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**Heyheyhey: **I love you. You always review and keep me writing! And yeah, I figured Benny would be nice enough to tell Phillips off for hurting the girl he likes. More to come with Benny's chivalrous side. ;)**  
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**Ilivluc: **Good! I wasn't sure how people would respond to the abuse thing. It's a little cliche, don't you think? But I loved the idea and it fit the story so...anyways. Thank you for your review.

**AnimalBuddy32:** Haha oh I know right? Sorry I took so long to update. I know how you feel! Thanks for reviewing!

**Hawkwishes: **Your wish is my command! I promise a quicker update next time!**  
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**Hear my Roar: **Right? I love Benny. Sorry for the slow update. I'll try to do better next time!**  
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**Sky18: **Glad you like it! I like to hear that! Thanks for the review!**  
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**DarkestShadow98: **You are officially my inspiration. Really? You like my story that much? That means so much! I'm writing for you, sweetheart! I couldn't lose a loyal fan! I really hope you like this chapter. Let me know? Thank you so much for your lovely review! It really made my day. I'll update faster for you next time.**  
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**Surfergirl14: I** know. I can't just leave you in suspense! Consider it updated!**  
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**On with the story...  
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><p><strong>Benny POV<strong>

Its Monday morning, and the first thing that makes me smile is the thought that I would go to school today. Okay, that was not the happy part. The happy part was that I would be going to school _with Kitty_.

She had shown me her class schedule yesterday, and it looked like we had all the same classes, so I decided that I would show her around and sit next to her to get her situated and stuff. For convenience. Nothing else. _Yeah right,_ I scoffed to myself. That girl already had me head over heels. Damn her.

I ran to her house and knocked on the door. No one answered. Slightly weary, I knocked again. Maybe she had already left and I missed her. Luckily, the door swung open, but it was not the person I was expecting.

It was her uncle. And he looked _seriously_ hungover. Trust me, my dad woke up like this enough for me to know. "Hello…" I said uncertainly. "Is Kitty here?"

He looked at me a long while before answering, confused. "Kitty? No. She left early last night. Said she was going to a sleepover."

A sleepover, huh. That made no sense. She hadn't hung out with any girls yet, and I'll bash the head in of the boy she's sleeping with with my baseball bat. But I decided I'd deal with that later. I couldn't be late to school again, cuz then I'd get a detention. And then I couldn't play baseball after school…the horror...!

I met up with the boys at the usual spot outside the sandlot. "Only two more weeks till SUMMER!" Ham crowed and pumped his fist. We all laughed and started across the sandlot.

"Hey, what's that?" asked DeNunez. I looked up. If you looked closely, you could just barely see brown hair hanging out the side of the tree house. I shrugged and started up the ladder.

"Where you going?" questioned Smalls.

"Where ya think I'm going? I'm gonna go see who the hell is in _our_ tree house."

The boys still looked weary, and Yeah-Yeah spoke up. "Yeah, yeah, but what if it's a serial killer or something?"

"Then you can have all my baseball cards," I answered sarcastically. A serial killer. Honestly. That stuff only happened in the cinema. But as I got closer, I smelled something fruity…like strawberries. Something familiar. As I get to the top, I gasp. It's Kitty, sleeping peacefully. What the f…?

**Kitty POV**

I was shaken awake. Before I could even adjust, I hear screaming. "Why the hell are you up here? You know how dangerous this is? You could have been kidnapped, or gotten hypothermia. What the hell were you thinking!"

His looks were wild, like he would lash out at any second, and I sighed. Taking pity on him, I explained. "I was thinking that I couldn't spend the night at my house," I answer honestly, refusing to look him in the eyes.

"Because your uncle's drunk," he guessed, trying desperately to fit the pieces together. I flinched, almost imperceptibly, but nodded. "Why?"

"Cuz he drank, idiot."

"Yeah, but why'd he drink?"

He always drinks when the Dodgers win a game," I answer quietly, looking for my spare set of clothes. I don't even know why I'm telling him this. Usually I just shut everybody down who tries to ask about this stuff, but Benny just makes it so damn easy to talk to him, and to tell him the truth. "So I ran out."

He lets out a deep breath. "Well, come on," he says softly. "Time for school." Oh yeah! School. I had completely forgotten. Note to self: bring an alarm clock with you next time you run away. Now where the hell are my clothes?

**Benny POV**

"Right," she says. And before I can react, she turns around and lifts her shirt over her head, reaching for the other one she had set beside her. I stare at her bare back, which unfortunately is right in front of me (and hard to look away from), before I remember my manners. What can I say? My mama raised me right. I turn away just in time to see the rest of the boys climbing the ladder.

They see Kitty (who, luckily, isn't actually facing them), and they don't have the effing decency to turn their backs. I glare at them, but they just grin back at me. I sneak a peek behind me. Big mistake. She's in her underwear, putting on a pair of jean shorts.

Before I can decide which of the boys to kill first, Ham wolf-whistles. _Great_, I think, _he'll be first_.

She muffles a scream, and then turns around, startled. She blushes down to her roots of her hair, and then, thankfully fully clothed, starts toward them. They jump out of the tree house, and Kitty follows, grabbing my hand and pulling me down with her, laughing. We chase them all the way to school, where they stop next to some teachers. Kitty and I stop too, because we can't just attack them in front of teachers. Damn them.

_*This is a line**Don't question it**Don't hurt its feelings**It's a line**Admire it. Love the line**I couldn't get the real line to work**Deal with it**This is a line*_

The rest of the school day flies by, between showing Kitty her classes and the cafeteria and whatnot, and being distracted by sitting next to her. Every time I saw her face, I remembered this morning. She couldn't stay up there again. What if she got herself killed? I tried to think of a way to keep her from going up there again.

First, I would check if the Dodgers won a game, then I would think of a place for her to stay that is not _in a fucking tree house._ Worst comes to worst, she'll stay with me.

Maybe I'll sleep on the couch or something.

Luckily, we didn't have much homework by the time 3 'o clock rolled around. The boys and Kitty and I all headed for the sandlot where we sat and did our homework for about 3 minutes before Ham complained.

"I don't wanna do my homework."

"Hey," replied Kitty. "The sooner you get done with your homework the sooner you can play baseball."

"Or we could just play baseball now, and worry about our homework later tonight," suggested Ham. That sounded fine by me, but Kitty shook her head.

"No. If you don't do your homework now, you won't do it at all." Well, she's not wrong. "Besides, its not that much. C'mon, you've only got 5 more math problems to do, and then there's only 7 questions to answer for English class on Romeo and Juliet."

"But that's a lot." All of the boys were whining now. Kitty just shook her head.

"The questions are easy. Look: 'Who dies during the play?' Mercutio, Tybalt, Romeo, Juliet, Paris, and Madame Montague."

DeNunez looked up. "Wait when did Paris die?"

Kitty blinked. "…When Romeo stabs him in Juliet's grave-site-thing. Stabbing tends to kill people."

"Oh, yeah!"

"What about Madame Montague?" I ask, completely lost. I really should have paid more attention in class today.

"Remember? When the Capulets and the Montagues were making up, Lord Montague said his wife died from grief over Romeo's banishment."

"Oh. Right." I tell her, even though I still have no idea what happened in the play. "I remember."

So (thanks to Kitty telling us all the answers) we finished our homework quickly, and grabbed our baseball stuff. The other boys were taking too long getting ready, though, so I turned to Kitty.

"You know you can't stay in that tree house again, right?"

She sighed. "Yeah, I know. I've only been here for two days, though. I couldn't think of any other options."

"I see. Alright, fine. You're off the hook for now. But if they win again soon, you can sneak in through my window if that's your only option again. At least then you'll be inside."

She smiled at me and looked down at the ground. "Thanks, Benny."

I know was about to do something, I don't know what, though. Hug her? (Maybe.) Kiss her? (Probably not. I don't-usually-have that kind of courage…) Talk to her? (Most likely.) But I was interrupted by Ham screaming at me, his voice cracking, across the sandlot.

"Get your ass over here, Rodriguez. I wanna play some ball!"

Kitty looked at me and laughed, shooing me away with her hand. I sighed.

"I'm comin', Ham! Calm the fuck down!"

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><p><strong>Kind of short, I know. I'll do better next time. <strong>

**Press that lovely little blue review button there? I'll give you e-cookies and an e-puppy!**

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	5. Campout

**A/N: Weeelll fancy seeing you here, eh? Haha well my writers block finally decided to go away and I'm on summer vacation *woot woot* so I decided I would get back to y'all on da stor-ay! YAY!  
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**So I decided to skip a little bit and just cut to because 1) SCHOOL IS BOOORRINNG! and 2) I didn't know what to write. Also, as mentioned in the first A/N this story follows the plot of the first movie, so don't be too surprised. BUT we have Kitty to spice things up a bit, don't ya think?  
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**On another note...I was a little disappointed with the last chappie, and I take it you were too, because I only got a couple of reviews. I NEED MOTIVATION PEOPLE! Now, I know I'm not gonna get a whole lot, but I usually get more than 4.  
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**happygoluckyfull: **It means a lot that you reviewed. Thank you! And I'm so glad that you liked the last chapter. It wasn't my favorite to write. More to come!**  
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**DarkestShadow98: **3! I love you! Haha your review made my day and I was just like "I really should start writing again. I miss her..." and now here I am. AHHH! I am SOOO glad that my update made you smile and I am OVERLY glad that you think I deserve reviews. PS: I've got the next THREE chappies written, so next time you won't have to wait as long for me to not be lazy and procrastinate...

**TaylorSwiftFearless:** Well, I haven't updated in a while so I guess we're even. It means so much that you reviewed for me! And I love it that you though my story was cute and/or amazing. Also: I 3 your pen name, but I think I already told you that. Haha Taylor Swift is my idol, inspiration, and she heals me from broken hearts!

**kmp:** Yes, I agree. Happy Kitty is awesome. Thanks so much for reviewing, and I'm glad you liked it! I wasn't quite sure what you meant by "_Benny by chacter though won't let anything get in the way of s good_" though...you're still amazing though just cuz you reviewed! Thanks!

**Disclaimer: *grumblegrumble* I do (not) own the Sandlot. If I did Kitty would be a reality. *sob* I wish I owned it, though!  
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**AAANYWAYS...on with the story.  
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><p><strong>Kitty POV<strong>

Luckily, the boys all managed to pass their class _*cough* thanks to me *cough*._ And yes, they were able to play baseball all summer.

I'm watching their game one day, and Ham, claiming to be Hank Aarons, decides that he was up to bat. DeNunez winds up a pitch-and…strike 1….strike 2…but his third hit sails higher and higher. I see Smalls try to get beneath it, but the ball sails straight over the fence. Ham runs the bases, smirking at me on his way to second.

"Beat that, sweetheart," he teases. I just laugh. No point in ruining his spirits by pointing out I already had. The other boys all throw their baseball gloves at him and, looking strangely dejected, begin packing up. I quirk an eyebrow at Smalls, who was the only one still in the outfield. He looks back at me weird and begins to climb the fence.

"NNNNNOOOOOOOOOO! STTOOPPPPPPPPPP!" comes the cry. I turn around and the boys are sprinting to the fence. What the hell has gotten into them? They drag Smalls back nearly 10 feet from the fence and sigh in relief. Then they look at me.

Seeing them so panicked made me laugh so hard I could hardly breathe.

"What the hell are you laughing for?" Bertram asks me.

"Yeah, yeah," adds Yeah-Yeah, "this ain't no laughing matter!"

I stare back at them, confused. "Wait. Why the hell did you panic like that?" Of course, they all ignore me and turn to Smalls. Squints speaks up.

"Holy crap! You could have been killed!

"Yeah, yeah! Whadda you doin?"

"Well, you all were leaving so I thought I'd just-"

"If you were thinkin you wouldn't'a thought that!" squeaks Squints.

By now, I'm laughing my ass off again, and I stifle my giggles as the gang calms themselves down. Once everyone (except me, as mentioned previously) is breathing normally again, Benny takes a deep breath. "You can't go back there, Smalls," he explained. Not that his explanation was the least bit helpful.

"Why?" I yelled across the field.

The boys finally acknowledged my presence and turned towards me. They all lowered their voices. "Because," the boys gulp, "The Beast." It's all really dramatic, and it's such a shame that I had to ruin it.

"…What the hell are you boys on about?" By now, I had made my way over to the boys, who are still on edge.

Benny swallows, and then turns to me and Smalls. "Go over there, real slow, and be quiet," he instructs. "Don't touch the fence, just peek through that hole in the green stuff... go on."

Smalls and I look at each other and shrug. What the hell?Might as well humor them! So we look through a square about 3 feet wide, and we can see the baseball just sittin' there in the dirt. Why the hell couldn't we have just jumped over the fence and grabbed it? Dumbasses. Then, real suddenly, a HUGE dog paw reaches out of the dog house, and snatches the ball away. Smalls gasps, and I stumble back as fast as I can.

Of course, just to make it all awkward and shit, I had to stumble straight into Benny. He grabs me by the waist to keep me from falling. I look up at him to thank him, and I quickly realize that we were close. _Too_ close, if you ask me. We're both real quiet and red in the face for a second before-

"What _was_ that?" Scotty pants. Benny disentangles himself from me, and my heart begins to get back to its normal pace. He looks at all the boys, then back at Smalls.

"Campout!" they all said as one.

Well…this should be interesting.

**Benny POV**

Around 8 that night, we all gather at the tree house Kitty had slept in while she was avoiding…well, y'know. I made sure that the boys knew NOT to mention that this campout had a girl coming with. Kitty decided she wasn't gonna be left out.

"So," she had questioned. "You expect me to go home to boring Dodger game reruns rather than a sleepover? I trust you boys not to pull anything! And I hope _you_ trust _me._" Of course we trusted her. But, as Ham had put it after she left, we're not sure if we can trust ourselves.

So here we are. Naturally, Kitty wears the shortest pajama shorts EVER. All the boys (except Smalls, of course. He wasn't there yet.) groan quietly under their breath when they see her coming.

"She's gonna be the death of me," Kenny says.

Squints agrees, before declaring dreamily, "She's almost as pretty as Wendy Peffercorn!"

"Prettier," I tell him before I could think about it. The boys all exchange another look, the same one they had exchanged in the diner after I scared off Phillips. "Watcha lookin like that for?" I ask them heatedly. They shrug, and say in unison, "Nothing, captain!"

Kitty has her pillows and blankets in her arms. "What the hell are you boys standing here for? Its cold outside!"

Ham smirked, and then put on a mock "shocked" face. "We're being polite! Ladies first! So uh….Squints, you're first." Everyone laughed, then Kitty shooed us up the ladder. She followed last.

"Where's Smalls?" she questions, after counting us all.

"Dunno," I tell her. "He'll be here soon. Probably got caught up doing something for his folks or something."

Just then, Smalls comes up the ladder. "Sorry I'm late," he tells us. I laugh.

"Don't worry bout it! Kitty just got here, and girls are supposed to be the punctual ones!" Kitty sticks her tongue out at me, and Smalls laughs, then goes over to put his stuff down. He goes to talk to Ham, and I walk over to sit by Kitty.

"Well," she huffs. "It's okay for me to be up here around you guys, but if I'm up here alone you freak out like a little school girl?"

I give her a look, and tell her "I never freak out 'like a little school girl'."

"Ummm I believe that's what you resembled when you found me up here alone. You were panting and squealing-the whole package!"

"Take that back!"

"Never!" she cries. Hmph. Time for Plan B. I inch towards her.

"Take it back," I warn.

"Nope!" God, she's stubborn.

I attack. My hands shoot out at her, intent on tickling her mercilessly. I tickle her all over-her sides, belly, legs, feet, anywhere I can. And she is SCREAMING with laughter. All the boys look over at us, amused, but I don't care. _I_ am too busy with REVENGE!

"Mercy! Mercy!" she screeches between laughs. "Uncle! Whatever!"

But I don't stop. "Take it back!"

Between her hysteria, she's able to get out, "I-I t-take -haha- it -haha- b-back!

"Take what back?" The boys have gathered in a circle around us, smiling as Kitty forced to be un-stubborn, something that never happened before.

"You d-didn't –haha- a-act –haha- l-like a little s-school g-girl!"

When I finally let up, she sits back up and glares at me. "I. Almost. Died!" she declares dramatically, then promptly attacks me, tickling me the same way I had tickled her. She was almost on top of me-and I was laughing so hard it was impossible to breathe, but I wasn't gonna let some _girl,_ especially Kitty, one-up me.

I grab her hands and flip us over so I had the upper hand. I was tickling her, until I heard a wolf-whistle. Or eight. We both freeze, our heads and necks burning hot. Our heads snap over to where the boys are sitting and laughing and eating their stupid s'mores. Even Smalls was laughing, for God's sake! And Smalls doesn't laugh at ANYTHING!

And then, all in a rush, I realize something, and I turn even redder. _I'm laying. On top. Of Kitty. Holy crap!_

**Kitty POV**

I'm gonna hyperventilate. Benny _fucking_ Rodriguez is laying on top of me and my senses are going into overdrive.

I'm aware of how nice his weight feels, and how good he smells, like aftershave and baseball and grass all at once. I'm aware of the freckles on his cheeks and I can see all the colors in his widened, hazel eyes. I hear his breath quicken and then stop altogether. But my mouth is failing me, and I cannot say a single word.

The boys laugh at us. Then, of _course,_ Ham had to make things _more_ awkward. "Well," he smirks mischievously, "I always knew Benny would be the first one to get laid." I feel my eyes widen dangerously, then, subconsciously, I nudge Benny off of me. He must be able to sense what is coming, because he rolls off of me without a word. With a screech, I launch myself at Ham.

I punch and kick every single inch of him I can, screaming all the while about how he would never say anything like that again, or I'll kick him where it hurts and stuff like that. It takes all 8 of the boys to get me to stop, and even then I'm fighting them as hard as I could.

Ham gets up and brushes himself off and then he _fucking smirks at me again._ "So you're saying you don't wanna get laid by Benny?"

"I don't wanna get laid by _anyone_!" I yelp, balling my fists and trying to fight my way free (again, unsuccessfully…)

"Ever?"

"No, but not right now!"

Evidently worried that I would rearrange Ham's dumb face, the boys begin to intervene. "Leave her alone, man. She doesn't need this."

I smile gratefully at Kenny and begin to wind down.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," Ham concludes. "Well? Are we here to argue or tell the newbies the story?"

With a cheer, the boys all run to sit in a circle. Apparently, it's story time. I cock an eyebrow at Smalls, and we go to sit down.

Squints glares at us all. "Quiet," he whisper…yells. Yeah, whisper-yells. That sounds right. "Are you trying to wake it up? It just went to bed!"

"What did?" Smalls practically shouts. I resist the urge to face-palm. Why the hell are we here?

The whole group shushes him, then whisper, "The Beast."

"Oh, yeah!" he yells again. This time I really did face-palm while the boys shush him again. Benny, who I'm sitting next to, stifles a laugh.

And the story begins.

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><p><strong>AN: LONGEST CHAPTER EVER! Haha. So..**

***Shoves microphone into random readers face* Did you LOVE it? Did you HATE it? Are you going to THROW BANANAS in my face? Yeah I know I'm weird.  
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**ON THE OTHER HAND...I have the next three chapters written so I will post them when I feel fit (*hinthint REVIEW IF YOU WANT MORE*) So...yeah. Good. LOVE YOU ALL! SEE YOU SOON!  
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	6. The Beast

**A/N: Well. Ummm this chapter is probably not very good. I just couldn't seem to get it right...  
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**On another note, when do you guys want Kitty and Benny to get together? I mean, it probably won't be long because I love them so much but if everyone really wants me to wait, I guess I can hold off a little bit longer. You'll understand after you read.  
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**Sorry if Kitty seems Mary-Sue-ish in this one...she was being difficult. She's grounded now.  
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**Anywho...  
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**kmp: **OH I see. Okay. And I'm glad you think that chapter was funny! Don't worry, I won't abandon this story until its done. I'm determined with this one to see it through!**  
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**drizzleluver: **Yeah. I don't like the classic girl-who-plays-baseball fics either. I'm really glad you think that mine is different than those because otherwise I would get so mad! I'm glad you don't think my characters are OOC either!

**HermioneandMarcus:** Glad you liked the story and the chapter! Thank you for reviewing!

**Guest: **I'm so happy that you think that my story is good! Thanks so much for reviewing!

**Guest:** Awww. It makes _me _giddy that you think I'm a good author! Haha the other two I've written will be up within the next week or two, so don't worry too much, but I have summer school and have to work around that...glad you like the story!

**call me richardson: **Haha I'm so so happy that you like my story! Thanks for the review and I will try to update again soon!

**Guest:** Oh, yeah. I get sick of Benny/OC stories too. But I'm really glad you like mine anyways! That was my goal and it makes me so happy! Also, I agree with your point on where people move too fast. So I'm gonna ask you, when do _you_ think they should get together? I'm thrilled to have you as a fan as well! And besides, I thought it would be unrealistic to have all the boys like her. Especially considering Wendy Peffercorn...haha! And don't worry, there's more drama to come! Thanks so much for the review! It made me so happy!

**DarkestShadow98:** Ahaa! Inspirational as always, my dear! And a place without internet? That's horrible! That's like...child abuse or something...Haha I'm sorry for making you wait for me to get the hell up and start writing...or posting rather. Yeah, I really have no excuse to not have posted sooner, but better late than never, right? So I was wondering when I should get Kitty and Benny together? I don't think I can hold off much longer...And I hope I'm meeting your expectations! Haha I love it that you think my writing is so good. Anyways, don't worry. Your reviews don't waste my time. They make my day! Haha thanks so much for reviewing! It means a lot!

**Guest: **Awww. Thanks for saying my chapter was great. Y'know sometimes I wonder about my writing and then I get reviews like these and it makes me feel all fuzzy inside. Haha thanks for reviewing!

**On with the story, my friends! Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Benny POV<strong>

Squints dims his lantern down to "set the mood." Or so he says. Beside me, Kitty is listening with an eyebrow cocked, wondering what the hell is going on. Squints begins:

"Alright. Listen up." He turns to where Smalls and Kitty are sitting, on either side of me. "The first time DeNunez heard this story, he fainted."

Kenny blushes. "Bull, Squints."

I smirk at him. This was payback for earlier. "You did, man." DeNunez shuts up. He knows it's true. Beside me, Kitty is trying to stifle her giggles.

Squints ignored us. "When Yeah-Yeah heard it, he peed his pants." Kitty's giggling a little harder.

"Shut up, Squints! I did not!"

Ham laughs. "You did, man."

Again, we are ignored. "And when Ham heard it, he barfed up two bags of marshmallows."

Now Kitty is hugging a pillow to her face trying to keep from making noise.

"Liar! It was only one…"

Squints gives us all a look saying _shut up you morons, I'm telling a story._ "So stay away from the door," he continues. "You could fall out. And don't sit on your sleeping bag. You could shit your pants. And you," he stares directly at Kitty. "Try your best not to squeal too much. It distracts from the story."

She narrows her eyes. "Don't worry bout it. If anyone's gonna be squealing, it's gonna be one of them," she tells him, pointing to the boys. Meanwhile, Smalls is already starting to go pale.

"The legend of the Beast goes back a long time…before any of us could pick up a baseball. Back to a place called Mertle's Acres…"

Kitty is listening to the story intently, and I've heard the story so many times I resort to watching her as she reacts. Her eyes widen when something dramatic happens, and she gasps a little bit when it's scary. She even giggles when Squints gets a little…over-enthusiastic. It's kinda cute, the way she reacts to everything.

About halfway through, she begins to shiver a little in her pajama shorts and her tank top. I grab a blanket from behind me, and I drape it over her. She smiles at me gratefully, and she snuggles closer to me. My heartbeat gets faster. And so, after a bout of inner turmoil and debate, I place my arm around her waist and pull her closer. She leans into me and continues listening with her eyes closed as Squints finishes his story.

"And so... The Beast sits there under that lean-to, dreaming about the time when he can break the chain and get out... dreaming of the time when he can chase and kill again."

**Kitty POV**

I look around at the boys, and what I find is almost humorous, if it wasn't such a scary story and it wasn't late at night.

Ham is drooling mallow goop, and marshmallow is squirting out from between his clenched fingers. Timmy and Tommy "Repeat" are crushing their pillows against their heads, blocking out sound from their ears. DeNunez and Yeah-Yeah are staring and shaking and have their eyes closed tight. Bertram's bottom lip is shaking and his forehead is screwed up trying to rid the mental images from his mind. Benny gulps loud, and squeezes my waist a little tighter. Scotty looks shattered, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. His marshmallow lays forgotten in the flames. Squints just looks at our reactions, looking proud of his story-telling talents.

And me? Well, I just wrap my arms around Benny and snuggle a little closer, my face expressionless. Squints looks surprised at this.

"Why aren't ya shakin like the rest of 'em?" he asks.

All the boys swivel their heads to look at me, their eyebrows raising slightly when they see me wrapped around Benny. I'm not even frowning. They all look at me curiously. "Yeah, Kitty? Aren't ya scared?" Kenny cocks an eyebrow at me.

I shrug. "Scary stories don't bother me." I tell them quietly. But I can tell none of them buy it. My voice shook slightly when I opened my mouth.

The truth, though? No. I'm too scared to tell them the truth. They'll think I'm weak. The truth is that I'm an expert at disguising my emotions. Had to be, ever since I was little.

When I was 8 and my parents got divorced? I pretended it didn't bother me. When my mom died in that car crash when I was 10? I pretended I was fine. When my dad was put in jail for drugs and robbery six months later? I pretended I didn't care. And when I found out my uncle would beat me if he was drunk? Well, I pretended that never happened.

My whole life was based off me pretending I wasn't breaking or hurting. The only reason I can smile is because I learned to pretend I don't feel the pain. And now that I like Benny? I pretend I don't. Why would he love me? I'm messed up, I'm scarred, and I'm broken inside. Besides, I don't think I could take it if I got hurt again.

I figure I've got to have a breaking point. But I try to push farther and farther away from there.

So I smile at the boys happily, _pretending_ their story hadn't affected at all. "Cool story, though."

"That ain't true. None of that's true." Smalls weakly piped up. "You guys are just-"

"Oh yeah?" Squints interrupts. "Then stick your head out that window and look down."

So Smalls makes his way over to the window and, after a second, he stumbles backwards. "He's down there," he whispers. Squints nods earnestly.

"You bet he is!"

Ham laughs darkly. "Whatever goes over that fence…stays there."

"It becomes the property of the Beast," Squints adds. "Forever."

**Benny POV**

It's around 3 in the morning when I give up on getting any sleep. My thoughts have been taken over by that damn girl.

She was curled up in a sleeping bag next to me, a peaceful expression on her face. Her hair was splayed over her pillow, and her breath was even and light. Her mouth was slightly open, her hands were clenched tightly on the edge of my sleeping bag, and _damn her. Why does she do this to me?_

I sit up, and she stirs slightly. Then her eyes flutter open. "Why are you still up?" she asks me drowsily. I chuckle at her while she blinks rapidly, trying to orient herself to consciousness.

"Couldn't sleep," I tell her.

"Awww," she mutters, her eyes closed again. She yanks me down until I'm laying down again next to her. Then she crawls out of her sleeping bag, wrapping the blanket of mine that I had given her earlier around her tightly.

She makes her way over to me, where I'm huddled under a blanket. She collapses next to me, wrapping her arms and her legs tightly around my torso and legs. She reaches her head up, and kisses me gently on the cheek.

"Then just rest," she slurs drowsily.

My mouth goes dry and my face heats up like crazy. But as she settles her head on my chest, her hair tickling my neck and shoulders, I manage to reach down and stroke her hair. She shivers gratefully at the gesture.

"G'night, Kitty," I whisper into the night. She smiles slightly.

Moments later she mumbles, "G'night Benny."

Neither knows if the other has heard them, but they both fall asleep with smiles on their faces.

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><p><strong>Well...er...what'd ya think? Ugh I'm not too sure how I feel about this chapter. D'you guys think I should wait more before getting them together or just say "what the hell" and put them together?<strong>

**Review please!  
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	7. Of Wendy Peffercorn and Banishment

**A/N: Alright, so I got a pretty even vote, but I think I made it work. If you don't like it...well, I don't really care. It's my story. You'll pretty much have to deal with it. Besides, I already have everything planned out in my head, and this is the way it started originally. I just kept it the way it was. ANYWHO...  
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**(PS it's hard to respond to reviews when they all are from "Guest..."  
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**Guest: **Yeah, don't worry. I like the treehouse chapters too! Thanks for the review!**  
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**Guest: **Well, honestly, have you ever tried hiding your feeling at 3 AM when you're mostly asleep? Let me tell you, it's not easy...haha. Thanks for the review though!**  
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**kmp: **You've become one of my favorite reviewers, haha! Yeah, that's kinda what I did. I'm glad you thought the chapter was good! It made my day! Thank you so much for reviewing consistently! You really help me write more!**  
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**Guest 01: **Finally! A guest review I can reply to easier! Haha! Thanks so much for the review! I'm glad you like my story, and it's like you read my mind. PLENTY of drama this chappie and the next one, also!

**fia- salvatore- cullen: **Yay! It makes me happy that you like Kitty! And don't worry, you'll get top see plenty more of this story. I'm not giving up! And I know how you feel, really well-written, interesting Sandlot stories are kinda rare...I'm glad you think mine is one of the few! Thank you for the review!**  
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**hockeychick19: **LOVE your penname! Also, thanks so much for reviewing! Lots of people don't take the time...anyways, here's your update!**  
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**DarkestShadow98: **THANK YOU! AS ALWAYS! Haha thanks again for reviewing the chapter and giving it your okay! And also, I fall in love with Benny a little more every chapter I write, too! You make my day (or week...) with every review you send in, and it makes my giddy to have a fantastic reviewer like you! (Plus, I like to edit my reviews too so...haha) Again, thanks so much for the review, and I don't care that it was a little late! Better late than never, right? BYE!**  
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><p><strong>Kitty POV<strong>

"SHUT UP!" I scream for the hundredth time that day. The boys had found Benny and me wrapped around each other this morning and have been giving me hell about it all morning while we wait for Squints and Yeah-Yeah to show up with a baseball. My face is burning up, and I get red every time I so much as _look_ at Benny.

Benny was lucky. As the boys had explained happily to me earlier, he was the captain and the best on the team. So that meant that they couldn't tease him or he'd be at free will to bash their heads in with a baseball bat. And considering his swing, that would hurt. A lot. Desperate, I play my last card.

"Benny?" I say sweetly, turning to him and pouting. "You're the captain. Can't you make them stop?" Benny smiles at me, and naturally I turn red again. Then he turns to the boys.

"Lay off her. Or I'll bash your heads in. That's a promise, by the way."

"Cheater!" wails Ham. "Using her girl-person advantages against us! That isn't fair! Bennyyy! This is a fair war! Cheeeaaatteeeerrrr!" The other boys quickly pick up the chant. To my surprise, Smalls laughs and joins in on all of this. Huh. I guess he's turning into a boy.

"Cheeeateerrrr!" They're all still screaming when Squints and Yeah-Yeah walk up. They turn to Benny and raise their eyebrows as if to say _what the hell did we miss out on?_

Benny laughs. Then he looks annoyed, and asks, "What took you so long? We've been here forever already!"

Now Yeah-Yeah laughs, "Squints was pervin' a dish."

"Shut up! I wasn't."

"Yeah, yeah you were! Your tongue was hangin' outta your head and you was swoooonin'!" he mocks. Then, pretending to feel faint, he said in a real high-pitched voice, "Oh-oh! Wendy Peffercorn! My darling! My lover girl!"

Squints furrowed his eyebrows and starts for Yeah-Yeah. I lunge for him and hold him back best I could, but Squints is still fightin' and screamin' "Hold me back! Hold me back!"

"I am holdin' you back, dumbass!" I say, pulling him backwards.

"Oh. Well, lemme go then," Squints mutters, calming down. After everyone is sure Squints ain't gonna attack anyone, DeNunez turns to Yeah-Yeah, who held out the baseball to the pitcher.

DeNunez takes the ball and examines it. "So, where'd ya get the money this time, Yeah-Yeah?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah! It was great! So I went around pretended like I was selling prescriptions to magazines. And the people asked if they should pay me now. So I said yeah, yeah, pay me now! And they did!"

The boys all look at him, astonished. Then Ham screams, "Sonuvabitch!"

Yeah-Yeah looks ashamed. "What-what?! I'll take it back. I know it was crappy, but I didn't have no money, I-"

"Naw, don't man." Benny interrupts.

"Yeah," I add. "He's just mad he didn't think of it first." Of course, this just brings about another round of Ham screamin' at me. "Cheater!"

Squints and Yeah-Yeah turn towards me. "What the hell is he screamin' on about this time?" I laugh at their dry tones.

"He's just mad that Benny likes me better," I say, turning towards Ham and sticking my tongue out at him.

"No!" Ham screams, his voice cracking. "No! He likes you different. Not more."

"No, it's true. I like her more. And different." Benny tells him, then winks. "She's never beaten me at baseball." I laugh, and cock an eyebrow at him, and he adds quickly, "She probably could though. She just hasn't." I nod approvingly.

"Whipped!"

"What was that?"

"Nothing, captain!" Ham is quick to reply. "I just can't believe you like her MORE than us!"

Benny reassures them, "Oh, don't worry. I like the rest of you all the same." At this, all the boys stare at Benny with their mouths open, except Kenny, who smiles and then pretends to look affronted, and Benny smiles. "Except DeNunez. He's just a little bit above the rest of you."

"What!?"

"Just a little bit. Like, a tiny bit. Don't worry about it. It's because he's the one who makes me hit homers" Kenny laughs as the rest of the boys pelt him with their gloves. I pretend to shield him and drag him away. Then, I hug him around the neck and cheer, "Welcome to the "People Benny Likes More Than Ham" club!" Kenny pretends to cheer with me, and Benny laughs at our antics.

"Before this gets more insulting," Ham yells above out cheers, "I'd like to play some ball!" All the boys cheer and start to get ready.

I look at the sun, and tell them, "Its gonna be a hot one today. Imma call that now. I'll be over there sunnin' myself!" And I saunter off. It's almost noon when the boys call it quits, and I join them in the bleachers.

All but Benny.

"Benny, man!" calls Ham. "I can't take it no more, and this pop ain't helpin! I'm bakin' like a toasted cheeser!"

"C'mon man, don't be wimpy!" Benny calls, jogging over.

I groan, and Benny looks at me. "Well face it, Benny!" I cry, my hands covering my face. "It's not a fit day out for man nor beast. And I'm not even PLAYING!"

"Yeah, yeah. We gotta call it quits."

Benny looks plain offended that the boys don't wanna play. "A vote, then!" he declares. "Anyone who wants to be…a can't-hack-it pantywaist who wears their mama's bra, raise your hand."

EVERYONE raises their hand. Even me. And we're all grinning like crazy, having fun pissing Benny off. He sighs.

"Fine. Be like that. What're we gonna do today, then?"

All the boys looked at him like he was crazy, like _what else were we gonna do?_

And they scream, "SCAM POOL HONEYS!"

Oh, God no.

**Benny POV**

So we weren't playing baseball today? Dammit. At least we're going to the pool instead. I tell all the boys (and Kitty) to meet back in front of Vincent's Drug Store and set off for home.

Now, I know we usually went to the pool for the lifeguard, Wendy Peffercorn, but I realized I was more excited about seeing Kitty. Unfortunately, this made images of Kitty at the pool (which made my face go warm) start to plague my mind. Trying to ignore how red my face is, I put on my swimsuit and a shirt and sprint back to Vincent's.

Most of the boys are already there because, even though I might be fast, I live the farthest away. Except for Kitty.

Speaking of Kitty, she and Smalls were walking up now. "Awwww," sings Ham. All three of us glare at him. _Shut up._

"Are we going to the pool or not," Squints screams.

"Awww…is little Squinty waiting to see Weeendyyy?"

"Shut. Up."

The boys were about to retort when Kitty interrupted them. "Let's just go," she says, leading the way.

She's swinging her hips and her cover-up is almost see-through and it just doesn't cover enough and the boys are all following her like lost little puppies. I growl deep in the back of my throat and glare at all of them. Squints, Timmy, Repeat (who isn't even old enough for this, godammit, but pretends he is anyways), Bertram, DeNunez, Ham, Ham again because of the crude remarks he makes to the other boys under his breath, Yeah-Yeah, and even Smalls, who keeps looking back at me as if to check that I wasn't gonna kill someone. Which was probably a good thing.

Because I _will_ kill Ham if he even tries saying one of those disgusting things to me, or worse, to her.

So I, naturally, abuse my authority and walk up in front of all the boys next to Kitty. Fortunately, I think Ham is still scared off by Kitty from last night to say anything. Finally, we arrive at the pool, and without a second thought, we all jump in. Except Ham, who first walks in front of all the girls and then jumps in screaming "HAMONBALL!"

And Kitty. She strips off her cover-up and drops it next to her towel. Damn that green and blue polka-dot bikini. Then, to my surprise, Wendy smiles and calls Kitty over to her.

Now, I knew Kitty and Wendy had met. And I knew that on the rare occasion Kitty wasn't with us watching baseball, she was walking around with Wendy Peffercorn and would sometimes bring her over to watch us play just to see Squints turn into a tomato. But I didn't know that they were that close.

So Kitty climbs up the lifeguard tower and sits down next to Wendy and they're laughing about something or other when Squints walks up.

"Damn," he laughs, "we gotta come to the pool more often."

"Agreed," laughs all the other boys and I. "Definitely gotta come here again soon." And then Squints starts having a laugh attack over something.

"What the hell has gotten into you?" Ham asks him.

"Well, its funny when its not you drooling over some girl." So Ham pushes him over.

Good job, Ham.

And then, just to make us more miserable, Wendy whips out the Coppertone. And she gives some to Kitty too. All of us moan. It's too much. It's a good thing they're not bothering to look at us.

"Oh man…" I whisper.

"Yeah, yeah. Too cruel."

"They don't know what they're doing," Timmy complains before Repeat jumps in.

"They don't know what they're doing."

I scoff at them. If there's one thing they do know, it's what they do to the boys. "Yeah, they do. They know _exactly_ what they're doing."

And then, Squints loses it. "I've come here every summer of my adult life…and every summer there she is. Lotioning and oiling. Oiling and lotioning. And smiling. And now Kitty's doing the same." He grits his teeth together. "I can't take this no more!"

And the rest of us just watch as Squints pushes outta the water and walks by the lifeguard chair, taking off his glasses. Wendy smiles at him, and Kitty waves.

"What's wrong with him?" Smalls asks us.

Yeah-Yeah looks worried. "Dunno…but that's the deep end, and Squints can't swim!"

Then Squints does the most desperate thing any of us had ever seen.

He jumps.

He sinks like a stone. We're all up and screaming and running to the deep end and Wendy and Kitty dive in and pull him to the surface and its all going so fast. The other lifeguard runs over and tries to help but Wendy pushes him away. "There's no time for that. He needs CPR."

The lifeguard looks at Wendy and Kitty and Kitty immediately puts her hands up in surrender. "I'm not a lifeguard. And I don't know how to administer CPR," she tells him, inching closer to me. "And you can't make me." She wraps her arms around me as if to prove that she wasn't moving, but to me, all it does is make me go red. And it makes Ham wolf-whistle and Wendy smile in this sorta _I know something you don't_ way. Or maybe it's a _don't you dare screw this up, Rodriguez_ sorta way. Can't tell.

But soon enough, Wendy lies Squints flat and she's giving him CPR.

"C'mon Squints."

"Yeah, pull through buddy! Pull through!"

"Yeah, yeah. C'mon, c'mon…"

And then Squints opens one eye and _winks_ at us. We're speechless. What the hell does Squints think he's doing?

It becomes clear soon enough when he wraps his arms around Wendy's neck the next time she comes down to give him air. He's kissing her. It's the lowest thing I've ever seen…and one of the coolest. Although Kitty looks ready to strangle him. Huh.

Wendy manages to break free, and she stands up, glaring down at him. "YOU LITTLE PERVERT!" she hollers, dragging him to his feet by the ear. And then she's dragging him to the exit, and all the boys follow, shouting. I stay behind with Kitty. She's shaking.

She pulls on her cover-up, and it's even more see-through now that she's soaking wet.

"What's up?" I ask her. She's still shaking from trying to contain her anger.

After a moment, she answers, "I just can't believe anyone would do that," she tells me softly. "Just go and take advantage of her like that." She turns away from me. "She liked Squints, Benny. She actually liked him. And if he woulda just asked her out, she woulda said yes. But she was scared and she thought he was dying and then he goes and does…that. It's gonna be hard for her to forgive him. I just can't believe he screwed this up."

She sounds so upset, and I loop my arm around her waist without thinking. Thankfully, she doesn't seem to mind, and she leans her head against my shoulder.

"Kitty," I say, struck by sudden inspiration. I look down at her and she's smiling up at me. This is one of the first times we've actually been alone all summer, with no boys to interrupt us. "Will you please…go out with me?"

She smiles at me, and kisses me on the cheek the same way she had done last night. "Yes," she whispers, pulling me closer.

And we walk over to the others.

For once, the boys don't notice us. If they do, they just don't mention it. They're all too focused on Squints.

Lucky for Squints, Wendy looked down from her tower, and she smiled and waved.

Maybe she would forgive him after all.

**Kitty POV**

I'm glad, and pleasantly surprised, when none of the boys comment about the fact that Benny and I have our arms around each other. They don't need to know he asked me out yet.

The boys all let Squints walk in front on the way home. Or rather, to the cinema. The boys decide that since they're banned from the pool and it's just _too damn hot_ outside, we're going to see a movie.

"What movie, boys?" I ask them at the box office. All of them wanted me to go home and change, but I said no. So they told me that if I didn't change, I would have to pay for tickets. They claim that there are gonna be a hundred other boys at the afternoon show, and they didn't want me to get…well, I don't exactly know. Anyways, I didn't wanna make us late. So now, I'm payin.

"King Kong," Squints pipes up. "Definitely King Kong." And since, apparently, it's "Squints Day," the boys all agreed. I nod, and turn to the ticket guy.

"10 tickets for King Kong," I tell him. He rings it up, and it comes up to 5 dollars. **(A/N: my parents tell me back then tickets didn't cost much. 50-75 cents, apparently.)** Now, I know for a fact that the total was supposed to be 7 bucks, but I hand him the money anyway, confused. Everything becomes clearer when he looks me up and down and _winks_ at me. All the boys growl, and Benny drags me away.

"We told you to change, didn't we?" Ham questions.

I sigh. "Yeah. Yeah you did. Whatever. The movie will be startin soon anyways. Let's just go."

"What movie?" I hear a semi-familiar voice behind me say. Benny tenses up next to me and wraps his arm back around me, holding me as close as he can. Suddenly, it strikes me whose voice that is. I turn around slowly, and groan. I was right.

"Whatta you want, Phillips?" Benny whines. I can tell he was really looking forward to a peaceful afternoon. Phillips looks pointedly at his arm wrapped around my waist.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, boys! What do we have here? Are ya really gonna let that piece of dirt touch ya? And after you chased me away and everything."

Now it's my turn to tense up. "You're just jealous cuz it ain't you, aren't ya?" Ham accuses. "Yeah, we've all felt that way. Don't let it disappoint you to much."

I'm soaking wet, my hair's tied up, and all my make-up had washed off (yeah, I know. Even I like a little make-up, though! Well, sometimes. Only if I'm seeing Benny.) but the boys all tell me I still look too pretty. And right now, I really hope they were lying.

I catch Phillips looking at my sheer cover-up and glare at him. "Just go, won't ya? I wanna go watch the movie in peace."

"What movie?"

Suddenly, Squints screams, "King Kong!" We all glare at him. Does Phillips really need to know that?

Said Little League boy smirks at me. "Us too. Don't worry, sweetheart. If it gets too scary, I'll hold your hand."

"Please. You'll be the scared one. Can't you get one of your teammates to hold your hand?" I laugh. He narrows his eyes at me.

"Someone need to be taught a lesson, doesn't she? You see, no one talks to me like that and gets away with it."

I'm completely aware it's not a good idea, but I bait him anyways. "And what are _you_ gonna do about it?"

Benny's grip on my waist tightens. _What the hell do ya think you're doin?_

He narrows his eyes at me. "If you don't run off during the movie, I'm sure you'll see. But for now, the movie's startin. C'mon boys."

All the boys turn to me, wide-eyed. "Depending on his plan," Squints tells me, "we may or may not be in deep shit…"

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><p><strong>So...yeah. I know a lot of people aren't going to be happy that I got them together, but it went with the plot. (Awkward first date! Hell yeah!) Haha just bear with me, people!<strong>

**Review please!**


	8. Trouble with Phillips and Uncle

**A/N:** **Well HAI THERE! How are you? School started last week and I am SWAMPED with homework...so, sorry for the slow updates!** **Moving on, plenty of DRAAAAAMMMAAAAAAA in this chapter! Also, 11 REVIEWS? I LOVE you people! I hope you enjoy it, and tell me what you think! Now...for the reviews...**

**HermioneandMarcus: **Hmmmm...Hermione and Marcus Flint, no? Interesting shipping choice. Can't really say I've ever considered it. Anyways thanks so much for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the chapter!**  
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**DarkestShadow98: **Believe me, hon, you will get PLENTY awkward-first-date-ness! Don't worry! If _I_ scored a date with Benny...I would freak out so friggin much it's not even funny. Haha I'm glad you like Benny's POV. I wasn't sure if I was doing it justice, considering he's a canon character and whatnot. And HAAAIIIII LAX is MY airport! I love it there, oddly enough. My family travels a LOT so LAX is like a second home. We have to go in and out of there at least 10 times a year? Maybe? I dunno. Anyways...you make me smile! Every. Single. Time. You. Review. I swear. Thank you so so so much for reviewing because it makes me happy! You're the best!**  
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** misstwilightprincess: **I see you like Twilight. I haven't even read the books, but I hear they're really good. For some reason, FanFiction won't let me type your pen name correctly so...sorry. Stupid FanFiction...and I know right! Why does she get a discount and not me?! And awkward first dates. That will be VERY fun to write! *smiles maniacally* Thanks so much for the review! I loved it!**  
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**Guest: **Thanks for reading and reviewing! I'm glad you loved it!**  
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**hockeychick19: **WELLL what a coincidence! That's actually never happened to me, but people say stuff like that happens to them all the time. Meh. Yeah, Phillips sucks, and yes, SQUINTS IS DA MAN! I love that part! I'm so glad you loved the story, and here's your update!**  
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**kmp: **YOU AGAIN?! I LOVE YOU! Yeah, I was overly proud of that last line, so I'm glad I got some appreciation for it! And YES! Someone else recognized the insanely low prices of the 50's and 60's! Haha so glad you liked the chapter and thanks for reviewing!**  
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**wondertogondor: **Lovin' the pen name. And yes. She is badass. Haha I'm thrilled that you liked my story AND that it made you laugh AND that you think I did a great job, because that makes me smile! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!**  
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**blackstream7: **OH ummmm...here you go! One update coming right up! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing my story! It means a lot that you took the time to do this!**  
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**Guest: **IT SHALL BE FINISHED! WORRY NOT! I'm glad you loved it, and thank you so so much for reviewing my story! It means a lot and it made me smile!**  
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**Guest: **And you know what? There will be even more awkward first date to come. YAY! I'm really happy you thought it was funny, and that you liked the story. But most of all, I'm so glad you love Kitty, because she is my...creation...and when people like her I smile! :) Thanks for reviewing!**  
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**SugarBubbleGum: **AHH! Review! YESSSS! Haha I'm so happy that you liked the chapter and the story, and of course, more is being written! Thanks so much for reviewing the story! It means a lot!**  
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**chickenleg718: **Yeah...Phillips is not a nice person...BUT DON'T WORRY! I'm sure your super nice and pretty/handsome and your obviously smart because you like my story ;)! Haha thank you so much for reviewing! Your review made me laugh!**  
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**Anyways...this chapter is going to be as "haha" funny as the pther ones, because it deals with some kinda serious stuff and a LOT of drama so...yeah. Just a heads up. On with the story!**

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><p><strong>Kitty POV<strong>

The King Kong movie is amazing. A little frightening, maybe, but still a pretty good film. Benny keeps his arm around my waist throughout the entire movie and, I admit; when it got scary, I may or may not have hid my face in his shoulder. Don't look at me like that. Even the "tough" boys shield their faces when it got scary. Phillips included.

Speaking of Phillips, that vile and disgusting creature…well, he sat in the seat right in front of me. True to his word, Phillips reached back constantly to hold my hand, winking at me. And every time either Benny, or I, or Ham would slap his hand away. Ham and Benny were sitting on either side of me. My very own "protective detail," as they called it. And we were sitting in the exact middle of the whole team.

About half way through, Ham started whispering to me. I guess he got bored of the movie. I admit, there isn't much action right now. It's more like the calm before the storm.

"So?" he asked, stealing a handful of Benny's and my popcorn.

I narrow my eyes at him. "So what?"

"So what's with you and Benny? You two have been awfully close since we left the pool." I close my eyes and purse my lips. I should have known this conversation would happen sooner or later. I sneak a glance at Benny, as my way of asking permission, and he nods nearly imperceptibly, glancing at me and smiling. None of this goes unnoticed by Ham, who smirks and raises an eyebrow at me. Turning back to him, I mentally brace myself for the torture and interrogation that is inevitably going to come from Ham and the rest of the guys.

"If you must know, Benny asked me out."

"FINALLY! Wait, what did _you_ say?"

"What the hell do you think I said? I said yes. God, Ham. The Lord gave you a brain. Use it!"

Beside me, Benny is smiling slightly, but his eyes are still glued to the movie screen. Shoulda known he was listenin in on our conversation.

Ham glares at me. "How was I supposed to know you said yes?"

"Well, apparently, Benny and I have been 'awfully close since we left the pool.'"

He smiles sheepishly, taking more popcorn. "Oh. Right."

"Yeah. Right."

We turn back towards the movie, but unfortunately, it turns out Phillips has been listenin in also. "Well, well. That's why you let him touch you. Oh, well. This will just make revenge _that_ much sweeter."

Ham goes wide-eyed and Benny goes wide-eyed. So I decide I'll go wide-eyed as well. Suddenly, I'm worried for my health. And safety. And sanity.

Phillips. Will. Die.

The rest of the movie, the three of us watch on in silence. Except for Ham singing under his breath every couple minutes or so. "Benny and Kitty sittin in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G…"

That boy better be glad he made it outta the theatre alive.

When the movie ends, it's only 5-ish, so it's still kinda light outside. All the boys "nonchalantly" form a circle around me, effectively trapping me and Benny, who still has an arm around my waist, inside. We spot Phillips coming towards us between Timmy and Tommy. It seems to be 12 to about 4-ish, and Phillips easily breaks through. He smirks at me, walking closer and closer.

"Now. We can do this the easy way…or we can do this _my_ way."

_Wow,_ I thought._ That's original. I've never heard that one before_. (Note the sarcasm.)

Smalls, DeNunez, and Benny grab me and start dragging me towards the exit, and Ham holds Phillips back. "RUN!" they're all screaming, while all the other boys join in on the fight. Problem is, I'm still wearing a cover-up dress and flip-flops from our day at the pool, and I just can't run properly. Meanwhile, Phillips has broken free from the fray and is running after all of us. I'm running behind all the boys, except Smalls. I'm dead where I stand. Or…run, rather.

And then it happens. I trip and fall.

Ugh. My life has turned into a friggin soap opera ever since Benjamin Rodriguez pranced on into my life. See what he does? Don't let Rodriguez walk into your life, kids.

Anyways, Smalls screams for Benny and DeNunez and tries to help me up, but it's pretty much already over. Phillips catches up, along with half his team. I can see that the other half is holding back the rest of the sandlot boys. Smalls is easy to hold back, and DeNunez is eventually restrained.

Luckily, Benny is still up and fighting.

Phillips is still standing in front of me, smiling, and pinning me down with a foot on my stomach. I can't even breathe and my chest gets tight and, _fuck, I'm gonna cry for sure_. I feel tears coming to my eyes. It's the first time in a long time I've felt completely and utterly helpless. Even when my uncle beat me, I knew I could do something. Right now, I'm just frozen.

There's one guy holding Smalls, and two really big guys on Kenny. The other 4 have finally managed to keep Benny away. And I'm still frozen.

Phillips drags me to an alley. And I guess this is it.

He's whispering harsh, things in my ears, and _nasty_ ones, too. He's getting closer and closer and he's playing with my hair near my ear. He keeps one hand clamped over my mouth to keep me from screaming. He's so _close_ now; I'm nearly shutting down. Suddenly, his hand is running down my face, down my neck, and lower…_that's not wear he should be keeping his hands!_ In a moment of pure rage and frustration, I bite down on his hand as hard as I can and scream. The tears are freely running down my face, and Phillips is swearing under his breath, looking at his now bleeding hand.

Suddenly, Phillips is on the ground, completely unconscious. I look up and I see Benny, fists clenched and eyes ablaze. And I can't help it.

I launch myself at him and it's the first time I've let anyone see me cry since I was 9 years old.

And that scares me.

No one is allowed to see how I feel. Not even Benny. So I do the first thing I think of. I stop crying and put on my mask. I disguise myself, and disguise my emotions. I pull my face back from Benny's neck and smile cautiously. I know it doesn't reach my eyes, but it's close enough.

No one's gotten me to stop pretending before. I'm not gonna start letting people see me fall apart now. No one's allowed to know how fucked up my life really is.

**Benny POV**

I'm gonna kill Phillips so fucking hard. And he _will_ die.

It took 4 of Phillips 'followers' to restrain me; two on my arms and two on my legs. Suddenly, there's a scream from where the other boys are still fighting and I look up to see Ham charging at this one guy who was the only guy between him and me.

Now, if you've never experienced Ham running at you full force and screaming like a mad man with his face all red from anger/fighting/exhaustion and blood running down his face from a gash on his cheek…well, you've never experienced true terror.

So the guy makes the right choice. He dives out of the way, and Ham turns towards me. He charges again, bowling over two of the guys. I manage to kick one of the other ones with my now-free foot, and I wrench my arm away from the last one, letting Ham take care of him.

"Where'd Phillips take her?" Ham demands.

I wrack my brain, trying to think, but I can't. "I don't know! I can't remember."

"Then you go that way, and I'll go this way. Bring her to the diner if you find her," Ham tells me. But before we could move, we hear a scream so desperate I nearly doubt its Kitty. Kitty's never desperate. But Ham and I exchange a look and sprint towards where the scream came from.

I spot an alley that looks just like where Phillips would take her, and she's still screaming. Phillips seems to be examining his hand, but he still has a hand on her chest. _Big mistake, buddy._

I run into the alley and without thinking, I bring my fist up and punch him I the side of his head. He falls down, unconscious. _Well done, Rodriguez,_ I congratulate myself for a second, before turning towards Kitty.

Before I can even ask if she's okay, she throws herself at me. Literally. I feel her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist, and her small frame is shaking in my arms. Then I feel something wet on my neck. _Tears,_ I realize. Kitty was crying. And that shocked me almost as much as when she stopped.

No warning, no time. She just stopped crying. She pulled her face back, and her eyes were red and wet, but besides that, she acted like nothing was wrong. Her smile looked confident, joyful, and she was chuckling quietly like she was enjoying the fact that I was carrying her. But I knew better.

The smile didn't quite reach her eyes. She had been scared out of her mind. I knew from the moment I heard that scream.

Ham jogs up, panting. "She okay?" he asks.

_No,_ I think. _She's definitely not okay._ But I look at her, and I tell Ham, honestly, "She will be."

He nods, and turns to her, "Dammit Kitty, that scared us more than the movie."

I roll my eyes, and Kitty deadpans, "Glad I could entertain you." Suddenly, I realized that Phillips was still unconscious at my feet, and that I was still carrying Kitty. Thinking it would be best, I try to lower Kitty down, but she whimpers and buries her head in my shoulder.

Ham stifles a laugh. None of us are used to seeing Kitty like this, but it's not exactly what I would call "funny." I glare at him, while Kitty whispers, "Please don't put me down…"

I shift around, so her hands are still around my neck, but I'm carrying her bridal style. This way I can walk easier.

"Okay," I tell her, and Ham's expression softens.

"C'mon," he tells Kitty and I. "The rest of the guys are waiting for us at the diner. We're having dinner there."

Kitty keeps her head buried in my neck all the way to the diner, and as we all pile into the booth, she glances around. All of a sudden, her eyes go wide. I follow her line of sight, and my throat gets all tight. Today is bad luck for Kitty, apparently.

The Dodgers won their game.

**Kitty POV**

I run outta that diner like the devil was after me. _Oh God,_ I think. _Oh God oh God oh God oh God!_

I bolt to my house sprintin' faster than I've ever run before. Uncle Dan was probably already drunk by now, which means inevitable trouble. I shiver. Uncle's _friends_ are probably all there too.

A word about my Uncle's friends: they're jerks. They live for money and drinks, which just so happen to be two of the things my Uncle likes to give away. They're all married to young, blonde go-go girls and drive down to Las Vegas every other day to gamble their problems away. All in all, they're not the kind of people you want to run into when there's alcohol involved.

I fumble with the key when I reach my front door, slamming it open. I barely make it three steps into the house before I hear _Mike's_ voice call out, slurring, "Hey, look at this pretty little thing!" I try to ignore him staggering after me 'til he yelled to me again. "I got more than just my wallet in these pockets, you know!" He wiggles his eyebrows at me and smirks.

I involuntarily gag, whether at his red face, terrible pick-up line, or the mere thought of this guy being…_attracted_ to me, I don't know. It smells like cigarettes and beer bottles in my living room, and I run for the stairs. Unfortunately, I get caught.

_Jack_ grabs me, laughing. Next thing I know, he tears at my shirt, nearly ripping it in half. I scream and scream, hoping to trigger _some_ sort of memory or emotion in my uncle's drunk-ass mind. But he's just watching me, a nearly sadistic smile on his face, like I'm just a sitcom or some shit. Like I'm some sort of make-believe character that doesn't have feelings.

Jack throws me to the ground, leering at my now nearly half-naked form.

He sits on my hips and offers me a cruel smile, to which I just scream louder. I stare into my uncle's eyes, but there's nothing. There's no sympathy, or remorse, or even regret at watchin the only family he has left be tortured by the miserable men he calls his friends.

Jack lays down on top of me, trying to shove his tongue down my throat, but I keep my mouth clamped shut. He lifts his head a couple of inches and growls at me. "C'mon bitch," he taunts. "Don't be like this."

He tries to shift himself around, and I don't even know what he's planning on doing, but I use my opportunity and kick him between the legs. He howls in pain, and I'm up and running even before he has the chance to scream profanities after me.

_Why'd I even come back?_ I thought. This has got to be the worst mistake I've ever made. I _knew_ Uncle would be drunk. I _knew_ his jerky friends would be over to make my life hell. Most of all, I _knew_ that I could have just borrowed a sleeping bag or something from Benny.

I shake my head. Thinkin about what I could have done isn't going to get me out of this mess. I glance back at the front door, wondering if maybe I could just run out now.

No such luck.

Mike is still standing by the door; ready to grab me and do whatever it is he wants in that sick, twisted mind of his. I turn to the stairs, and sprint up. I hear Jack climbin' up the stairs after me, until I hear something that sounds suspiciously like someone falling back down the stairs. I might've even laughed, if I wasn't so terrified.

I look around my room and grab whatever I might need for the night and the morning; toothbrush, pajamas, and yes, even some concealer. Don't judge. I snatch up a couple other things and stuffed them into the bag I have my sleeping bag in.

I haven't heard anymore footsteps, so I assume they're waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. I run for all I'm worth. Jack is still dazed from our fun little…encounter and doesn't see me until I'm past him. Unluckily, my uncle doesn't have the same disadvantage.

He rams into me, still in my torn shirt, and presses me up against the wall. I drop my stuff and raise my hands, but they hardly protect me from the blows that follow. I'm seeing stars and I slump down. The only thing that keeps me from keeling over onto the floor is Uncle's strong arms pushing me harder and harder against this cold, concrete barrier that keeps me from running away to safety.

I resist the urge to just black out. Who knows what they'd do to me if I passed out? Ugh. I shiver, and command myself not to think about it. I glance desperately at the door, only to find Mike on the ground with a bottle in his hand. That idiot drank himself to sleep!

A tiny sliver of hope ignites within me. _If I could just make it outta my Uncle's hands…_

As I'm watchin the door, a new form of hope appears as the face of the one and only Benjamin Rodriguez runs up, his face falling as he assesses the situation. He looks at me, horrified, and his eyes say it all.

_What didn't you tell me?_

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><p><strong>AN: So...whaddya think..? Love it? Hate it? Don't care? Think it's ugly? Gonna give me a prize? Gonna murder me tonight in my sleep? I WANNA HEAR IT ALL! But seriously, reviews make me smile, which make me more productive. Yup. There's my logic. Cool. Gotta go, but I'll see you soon? Yes? Hopefully? Whatever. BYE PEEPS!**


	9. Better Explanations and, Wait, What?

**A/N: So...I suck at updating...but that's okay, right? Not everybody's as perfect as those reviewers out there, am I right? Speaking of reviewers...**

**hockeychick19: **Hell yeah, you gotta love the intenseness stuff. Haha glad you liked it, and thanks for reviewing (again)!**  
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**kmp: **No, you're awesome. I mean, I'm a little awesome, but you're SUPER awesome. Like insanely crazy OVERLY awesome. Anyways, I'm so glad you thought I did the chapter justice, and thank you for the review! You da bestest!**  
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**misstwilightprincess: **Huh. I don't lie cherry pie much either. Let's do sweet like candy, shall we? Haha. Yeah, the ending was kinda cliff-hanger-ish. But that's okay! Cuz here's the next chapter! Thanks for the review!**  
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**Kiteria: **Oh, yeah. You rock. Thanks for reviewing like four different chapters, cuz that made my day. Or week, rather. I smiled so big when I opened my email to that. You're legit awesome! I'm so so happy that you like the story, and yeah, I was kinda mean to Kitty in that last chapter. Oh well. She's tough, she'll manage. Anyways THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS!**  
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**DarkestShadow98: **HI AGAIN! How are you? I feel ya, I couldn't update for the same reasons. Friggin school screwing with my outside life. And yeah, Phillips kinda sucks. Like, majorly. Let's face it, he's just a jerk. Damn, if you let Benny into your life after all that, you really are badass, but then again...Benny, y'know? Just...ugh. I love him. Haha oh my god, I love you. Yup, no lie. You're literally the best. Ever. Like, I can't. I can't even. I literally cannot even. I...I am unable to even. I can't even! I love you! Thanks for reviewing (like always)! ...Kay, bye.**  
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**Guest: **WEIRD! Rsvbsrkvbrlusvhrslvhrsilhfis lfbesukfbrsukvbeku! was my response to your review, haha. Hmmm...yeah...make the OC just really random and spazzy...I could see it. Everybody needs a spazz in their life...haha. Thanks for reviewing!**  
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**Guest: **Well, it wasn't exactly a hurry...but here's the chapter, anyways! Thanks for reviewing!**  
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**Now...READ ON!**

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><p><strong>Benny POV<strong>

It takes about two seconds to assess the situation. There's some guy at my feet passed out with a beer bottle, a dazed looking guy about to pass out leaning against the railing at the stairs, and…Kitty's uncle. Uncle Dan, was it? He…he's got her pinned against a wall…and his hand is clenched a fist.

Assessing the situation was easy, but comprehending it took some time. I know that her uncle drinks when the Dodgers win, but _what is this?_ What did she keep from me?

She looks up, and her eyes lock with mine. I see the shame and I see the pain. I just wanna hold her and make that fucking hurt that's written all over her _goddamn face_ go away. But before I can walk to her, I see her uncle raise his fist again.

_Oh. Hell no._

I take six steps into the living room and launch myself towards Kitty's "loving" Uncle Dan. He's probably twice as big as I am, but I guess I caught him off-guard because he topples to the floor. I kick him in the gut, seething, before I turn to Kitty.

She's staring at me.

She looks like she doesn't recognize me.

And I realize, she shouldn't. I just beat up her fucking uncle, and my face, my most likely _murderous_ face, is probably anything but comforting to her. Does she think I'm a monster?

_Woah._ I stop and look at her. I mean, _really_ look at her. I feel all expression melting off my face as I draw a blank. _Why? Why_ was her uncle beating her when I walked through the front door? And _who_ are those other two guys with beer in their hands? But I figure this isn't the best time to ask. Kitty is shaking, staring at everyone and everything in her living room.

Her bottom lip starts to tremble. _Fuck._ We do NOT need TWO crying episodes in one day. I don't like it when girls cry. They're emotional and irrational and almost always ready to snap. Give me the fucking Beast any day. Just NO crying girls. And _especially_ NO crying Kitty. I thought I wouldn't have to deal with this, with her being all badass and shit.

But just my luck, huh?

I gather Kitty up in my arms and sling her bag over my shoulder. For the second time that day, I find myself carrying a pretty, emotionally exhausted girl bridal style.

"Where," she croaks, "where are we going?"

I shush her, cuz her voice sounds worn and pretty bad off. "C'mon, baby," I tell her. "Just go to sleep."

"But…" she trails off.

"What?"

She pauses. "Thank you Benny. I think that's the third time you've come to my rescue since I met you. Just…thanks."

I grin and tell her that it's no problem, and she relaxes in my arms and lays her head on my shoulder.

"Goodnight, Benny," she mumbles into my shirt.  
>"Night, Kitty," I whisper back.<p>

I carry her to my house and knock on the door. Mama seems surprised to see me…and, well, Kitty, too.

"Benny-" she starts, a dangerous and suspicious edge to her voice, but I cut her off.

"Mama," I say, and she glares at me for interrupting her. "_Lo siento_, mama, but can I please go put her down first? I promise I'll explain everything, but Kitty's had a…a rough night. _Por favor?_"

She hesitates, but seeing the bruises on Kitty's face and her ripped shirt and the tear streaks that have dug trenches through the dirt on her face, she nods. "_Sí_, but hurry."

I smile thankfully at her. "I will, Mama."

I go up the stairs to my room and lay her down softly on the mattress, careful not to wake her up. I'm amazed she even went to sleep in the first place. Once I'm sure she isn't gonna wake me up and go all "feministic liberal 'I can take care of myself, Benjamin' Kitty" on my ass, I walk back downstairs. Mama's waiting at the kitchen table for me.

"So?" she prompts.

I sit down across from her, and I tell her everything. From how Kitty and I met when she was unpacking the boxes to finding her in the tree house (although I left out the…undressing incident) to the movies to finding her at the mercy of her uncle just now. Mama just stares at me. "She didn't have anywhere to go, Mama," I whisper. "I had to help her, and I thought maybe she could stay with us. Because she sure as hell can't stay with her uncle tonight."

Mama glares at me. "Language, Benjamin!"

"_Lo siento_, Mama, but please? I don't want her waking up _mañana_ in another tree house. I wanna make sure she's safe. _Por favor, _Mama_?_ Please?"

I half-expected Mama to make me throw Kitty out. She's kinda over-protective that way. But she just laughs. "_Claro que si_," she tells me. "Of course she can stay here tonight."

I smile in relief. "_Gracias-_"

"_But_," she interrupts, "you'll have to find somewhere else to sleep, Benny.

"Okay, Mama. Umm…Kitty has a sleeping bag, may I please sleep in that in my room? Just in case?"

Mama smiles and nods to me. "_Sí._ Now go to bed, baby. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Mama," I grin and kiss her on the cheek before stumbling drowsily up to my room. I hadn't noticed how late it was until now, or how tired I am.

I sift through Kitty's bag and unroll her sleeping bag. I change out of my swim trunks and into my pajamas before crawling into Kitty's sleeping bag.

As I flip the switch, I whisper into the darkness. "Goodnight, baby."

**Kitty POV**

I wake up in an unfamiliar (yet somehow _very_ familiar) bed. I've managed to wrap myself up in the comforter so I feel like some kind of luxurious, dressed-up mummy from Ancient Egypt.

_Fine. I'm awake. _I tell myself to get up, even though there's something unexplainably soothing about this bed. Maybe it's the mattress? I shift around a bit, but there's nothing strikingly _amazing_ about the mattress. Well, maybe it's the pillow? I move my head, but it's not the pillow either. Then it hits me.

It's the smell.

The bed smells strangely like grass and dirt and hard work, but also like…_clean_…like soap and deodorant and maybe just a hint of aftershave…or maybe that's laundry detergent…but the thing is…it smells like…like…

Benny.

The bed smells inexplicably of Benny.

I tentatively open my eyes to find myself in a completely unfamiliar room, and I start to panic. Where the hell am I? Then, I spot Benny lying on the floor in my sleeping bag, and I remember the events of last night. I remember the pool, and I smile, but then I remember what Squints did, and the movies, and Phillips, and the Dodgers, and lastly, I remember Uncle and his friends. I groan and plop back down on the bed.

_Come to think of it, the mattress is actually very comfortable…I could just die here now…_

Unfortunately, I think I woke Benny up. He sits up and crawls out of the sleeping bag. His undershirt has ridden up his _very nicely toned_ stomach, and I almost smile, but then I remember the inevitable explaining that will have to come.

"Kitty…" he whispers, "baby, what _was_ that?"

I sigh and pat the bed next to me, and he sits down. "Well…" I start, but before I can continue, Benny's mother walks in. I don't think I've ever been more embarrassed or more red in the face before in my life.

I expect her to glare at me, or to start making accusations. At the very least, I expect her to throw me out the window and disown Benny. I don't even consider the idea that she might already know I was here. "Ma'am, I'm so sorry, I-"

"Sshhhh Kitty," Benny hushes me. "She already knew you were here." Benny smiles at his mother and she smiles back.

"Morning, baby," she says softly to Benny.

He grins back at her. "Good morning, mama."

Then Benny's mother's face sort of hardens, but just barely. It would be invisible if you weren't waiting for it. _"¿Te prometo que no hice nada anoche?"_ she prompts. Unfortunately, I didn't understand a single word of that. If I marry Benny someday, would I have to learn Spanish? God, _that_ would be a disaster.

Benny goes bright red. "_Sí_, Mama. _Te lo prometo_."

Benny's mother smiles again. "Okay!" she chirps. "I'm off to work. _Adios_, baby."

"_Adios_, Mama."

Benny's mom leaves and Benny turns back to me, and he looks at me expectantly.

I look at the floor. "He doesn't ever beat me when he's not drunk," I offer, like somehow that will make it all better.

Benny sighs, exasperated. "That's not the point!" he practically screams. "The point is that I found you getting beat up by your uncle last night and YOU NEVER EVEN TOLD ME ABOUT IT!"

"I'm sorry!" I sob. "Benny, you have to believe me! I'm so sorry. I wanted to tell you, but I didn't know what you would do. He loves me to death, I promise! He'd _die_ for me! But he's not himself when he's drunk and I don't want to be taken away from him! I've already lost my mom and dad. I don't want to lose him too."

"But Kitty-" Benny starts to interrupt me, but I still have one last point to make. I look up and face him straight in the eyes.

"If I'm taken away from him, I'll have to move somewhere else! To wherever the next-of-kin is. And then I'll lose you, too! Baby, I couldn't risk all that." That does the trick. I see Benny's face sorta soften.

"Kitty," he tries again. His voice sounds strangled with unvoiced emotion. "Does your uncle even know about this? Does he know what his friends do? Does he know what _he_ does?"

I look back down. I can't explain why it's so hard to look in his eyes, but I feel like I'm betraying him if I do. I shake my head. "No," I whisper. "He doesn't. He wakes up the morning after and doesn't remember a thing. I never thought to tell him, because dammit Benny, I can't face him and tell him these fucking horror stories. That would just make it real, and my life's messed up enough."

"Baby, what's happened to you?" Benny asks, lifting my face to meet his. "Why is your life so messed up? C'mon, I need the whole story."

I almost break down. I _almost_ start sobbing completely. But I don't, because I owe this, at least, to Benny. "When I was 8, my parents got divorced," I start, my voice thick. "They were always fighting, and one day they decided they needed a break. They realized how much simpler life was without the other one stressing them out, and they just…split. But I always knew both my parents. They'd always take me places or buy me things and try to get me to tell the other that I liked them more. They spoiled me, and they bribed me, and I was torn. I couldn't help it. I liked them both the same. But then, a year and a half later, they started getting along again. They started talking about getting remarried. Three weeks before the would-be wedding, my mom got killed in a car crash. She got hit by a drunk driver who was driving the wrong way. She was killed instantly. My dad, well…he didn't take it too well. He got worse and worse, more and more depressed, and he got into some shady stuff. Six years after my mom's death, my dad was put in jail for drugs and for armed robbery. For the first time, I actually had no one. I was 11 when I left to live with my uncle, but I never had the heart to tell him he beats me. My mom, his sister, was all he had left, too. Neither of us need anymore pain."

"Kitty," Benny warns.

"I know, I know. You're right. I have to tell him. I'll tell him tomorrow when he's…conscious. Promise."

Benny smiles. "Good." Then he leans down and kisses my cheek. "C'mon. We're late for baseball."

I smile and roll out of bed, before scraping my hair back into a ponytail. "You're right. We are late. Because I have a surprise for you. A reward, actually."

Benny's eyebrows furrow at me, and I laugh at his confused face.

"We're wasting time! You'll love the surprise, I promise!"

He grabs me by the hand and we both sprint out the door together, laughing. "Alright. Let's go."

**Benny POV**

When we reach the sandlot, the boys just stare at us, grinning stupidly.

"Well, well, well," singsongs Ham. "Here come the lovebirds."

Squints grins. "Why're you late? Were you two _smoooochinng?_"

Kitty blushes as the other boys laugh and she flips Ham off. I guess Ham told the boys what happened. "Better not piss me off," she warns. "Because I have a surprise. And today is probably going to be the best day of your life."

All the boys stop laughing, and Ham regards her cautiously. "That…could be taken the wrong way…"

"GOD, HAM! You're so disgusting!"

Ham shrugs, and asks, "So what exactly are you planning?"

Kitty ignores Ham and turns to me. "So Benny, remind everyone who your living hero is. Like, the one that's not Babe Ruth…cuz he's dead..."

"…Maury Wills?"

"Very good! And what team does said living hero play for?"

"The Dodgers." I narrow my eyes at her. I have no idea where this is going…

She grins. "And _who_, exactly, is the niece of the owner who can get into Dodger stadium while the team practices and who knows the exact bus routes for getting there?"

My eyes go wide. "Oh my god. You're serious?"

She smiles at me. "You saved me Benny. This is just me repaying the favor." Then Kitty turns to the other boys. "And y'all are welcome to come, too."

The boys and I all cheer, insanely happy. _Holy shit,_ I think. I'm actually going to meet Maury Wills. He's only my hero. He's on his way to beating the record for most bases stolen! Besides the Great Bambino, this guy is the shit. I _worship_ this guy. So Kitty loads us all on a bus.

"They'll be practicing in about a half an hour. Let's go, boys," she tells us.

I practically jump up and down on the bus all the way to the stadium. Meeting Kitty is obviously the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me. And not _just_ because she's taking me to meet my idol. The boys and I barely stop talking all the way to the stadium on the bus, but when we finally reach Dodger Stadium, we all go quiet.

Kitty grabs my hand and leads us all to what would normally be the ticket booths. There's a security guard standing near them and Kitty walks straight up to him.

He smiles at her. "Kitty! What a pleasant surprise! I've barely seen you all summer."

Kitty grins back. "Hi, Joe! Yeah, I've been watching these boys play baseball all summer. Speaking of baseball, ten passes, please?"

"…so, what'd these boys do to deserve this?"

Kitty hauls me forward. "This boy, Benny, just about saved my goddamn life. And his idol is Maury Wills, so I thought I'd take the boys to meet him. Speaking of which, could you call Maury and let him know I'm bringing guests?"

"Sure. No problem. And uh…Plan LTP?"

Kitty's face suddenly lights up. "Oh my god, I forgot about that! Yes! Oh god, definitely! They'll love this!"

Joe smiles. "I'll get right on that." Then Joe pushes a button and tells us, "Go ahead. They'll be expecting you."

Everyone's silent as we walk through the hallways of Dodger Stadium. It feels almost real, considering we have our baseball gear on because we came from the Sandlot. This is amazing. I know instantly that this is what I want. Forever. This is where I belong. Cheesy, I know, but _so_ true. I live for this feeling.

But that's nothing compared to when we step on the field.

I swear my heart stops. I imagine someone announcing my name. _Benjamin Rodriguez._ I smile so big I swear my face splits in two. Kitty looks at me, and she smiles, too.

"Just wait for Plan LTP," she whispers.

I look at her and nod before I realize I have no damn clue as to what "Plan LTP" was. I do a double take. "Wait, what's Plan LTP?"

"You'll see, Benjamin. And you're gonna love it."

Suddenly, I see the team. They're doing batting practice. _I see the 1962 Dodgers._ I see Frank Howard and Johnny Roseboro and…and…Maury Wills…_Oh. My. God._

"Kitty," I scream excitedly, shaking her shoulder. "Look! Look, Kitty! It's Maury Wills!"

Kitty laughs and starts towards the players, but I, and the rest of the Sandlot team, hang back. This is just all too…unreal. It's a lot to process. Half way there, Kitty turns and sees us still standing here. She rolls her eyes in a sorta _dammit, Rodriguez. C'mon, would you_ way. She marches back, grabs my hand, and hauls me forward. Ham wolf-whistles when she grabs my hand, and Kitty picks up a spare baseball near her on the field and chucks it at him. Luckily, he ducks, because that woulda hurt.

"Maury!" she calls, and the one and only Maury Wills turns towards us. "I hope Joe called you," she laughs.

Maury's face splits into a grin and he drops the bat to walk towards us. "Of course, Kitty! I take it these are the LTP boys?"

Kitty nods, and hauls me forward. "And _this_ is Benny. Well, it's Benjamin Rodriguez, but I call him Benny. He saved my life. For real. That's why I decided to reward them. We're umm…we're also going out…" she blushes, plucking the baseball Maury Wills was holding out of his hand. Then she turns and chucks the baseball at Ham, who was in the middle of wolf whistling. Maury laughs as Ham dodges Kitty's throw.

"I see your throw hasn't deteriorated. You still the best damn pitcher on the diamond?" Maury asks Kitty. Kitty shakes her head.

"I wish," she tells him. Then she pulls Kenny forward. "Maury, you gotta see DeNunez here. He's amazing." Kenny grins (and I _swear_ he blushed) and shakes Maury's hand.

"Oh my god!" Kitty yells suddenly. "Benny! Benny is friggin' _incredible_ in a pickle. Truly rubba legs. And he's fast, too." Kitty drops her voice to a stage-whisper. "You're his idol, Maury."

I can feel myself go red, but Maury just grins. "You have good taste," he tells me as he shakes my hand. "You just don't get it any better than me and Kitty, here. But we might just have to put those rubba legs to the test, huh?"

Kitty laughs. "And now," she announces, "is when I explain Plan LTP. Boys!" All the Dodgers players jog over, grinning and calling out 'hello's to Kitty. "It's time for Plan LTP. Or, in other words, Plan Let Them Play. Stupid name, I know, but it gets the point across." Kitty turns to me. "Grab a bat, Rodriguez."

_Woah. What?_

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><p><strong>AN: So...what'd ya think? Lemme know using that there review button! Thanks for reading!**


	10. Playing with the Big Leaguers

**A/N: GUISEEE LOOOKKK. I FINALLY UPDATED AGAIN. A fucking miracle, am I right?  
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**But seriously, I _am_ sorry about the not-so-consistent scheduling and my not-so-frequent updates. I'm kind of a mess right now. You see, I made the starting team for varsity soccer. AS A FRESHMAN. So I kind of have like no more free time. I have conditioning in the morning, seven hours of school, and then two and a half fucking hours of practice after school. If that's not bad enough, I had the brilliant idea of taking all honors classes as a freshman, and I was barely keeping up BEFORE practice started. Not to mention the fucking drama that pops up everywhere.  
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**But I was on a plane. So I wrote.  
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**FINALS ARE OVER, BITCHES.  
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**ANYWAYS. If you're still reading this, THANK YOU.  
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**The Starkiller: **Diggin' the penname. I have no idea what it means, but it's kind of friggin epic. Haha THANK YOU. AND I'M SORRY FOR BEING SO SLOW. AND I'M NOT MAKING ANY PROMISES THIS TIME. BECAUSE THOSE AREN'T REALLY WORKING OUT.**  
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**curiousivy8: **I've always pictured Ham as the wisecracker of the group, and I just hope I'm doing him justice. I'm so glad you liked the last chapter, and thank you for reviewing!**  
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**Castiel22: **You are so so so so fantastic! Haha well I hope that this chapter was kind of worth the insanely long wait and that you haven't given up on me! Thanks so much for the review!**  
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**MissLunaLovegood1999: **I'm glad you liked the chapter! The nargles helped me with it, so I knew it would be presentable. They hepled me with this one, too, so I hope you like it! I'm hoping the story will make the Quibbler sometime...anyways thank you so much for the review!**  
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><p><strong>Benny POV<strong>

This?

This is insane.

This is un_fucking_believeable. I, Benjamin Rodriguez, am about to play the _Dodgers._ I turn to Kitty, who's sitting in the dugout, and run over, momentarily forgetting my bat, my teammates, the _m__otherfucking _Dodgers, and even Maury Wills. I forget everything except for _Kitty, Kitty, Kitty._

"Thank you," I whispers, pulling her in for a bear-hug because this is way better than anything I've ever even dreamed could happen. And then, acting on a stupid rush of adrenaline (because I'm on the Dodgers field and I've just flat-out decided that this is where I belongs) I pull Kitty in for a kiss.

Our first kiss.

And, as cheesy as it sounds, I swear I see fireworks.

I hope Kitty feels the same way.

"Thank you," I murmur again. I repeat the words like a mantra between kisses and she smiles.

Pulling away, she whispers back to him. "You saved me," she reminds him, before pulling him back in for one last sweet kiss.

She glances at something over my shoulder and blushes, and I turn to see my whole damn team wolf-whistling (and _how the hell_ did I not hear that before?) and, if that weren't enough, the boys have got the Dodgers in on it, too. _Shit_, I think, staring at all the laughing baseball players with their hands over their hearts dramatically, exclaiming about "young love."

"Damn, Kitty," the pitcher, _Don Drysdale_, I realize, calls. "We knew you'd find a good one someday. Seems fitting he would be a baseball boy."

Kitty blushes again, and I turn back to her, pecking her lips one last time before grabbing the bat again. "So uhh…" I can feel myself blushing, so, not looking Ham (or anyone else, really) in the eye, I prompt, "Let's play?"

The Sandlot team is up to bat first, and, naturally, they push me out to be batter #1. _Fuck it_, I decide, _it's the Dodgers. I have an excuse to strike out_.

My first hit is a foul ball first, but then I surprise myself and I hit a nice one out to the fence at left field and manage a triple before the ball is back in the pitcher's hand. _Damn_, I smile to myself. Score one for Rodriguez.

And suddenly it's as if the team isn't even playing a professional team; it's just another scrimmage against some wannabe's from the schoolyard. Suddenly, because Benny gets a triple and that's more than a lot of pros can say for their first game against a _real_ team, the Sandlot team has it's confidence back. They're ready.

"A'ight," nods Tommy Davis, the left fielder who just scrambled for the ball. "I see you." He grins widely at me, and I grin right back, starstruck.

"C'mon, Yeah-Yeah," I murmur as said boy steps up to home plate to bat.

The third baseman raises an eyebrow. "Yeah-Yeah?" he asks.

"Nickname," I tell him by way of explanation as I leads off third. But then I hear a low whistle from the third baseman and I notice the pitcher turn, and I retrace back a couple steps. "Hey, now, don't you be givin' me away," I laughs and, to my astonishment, the third baseman laughs with me. Suddenly, this game feels a lot more comfortable.

"It's my job. Sorry kid," he chuckles, but I'm a little too busy watching Don Drysdale pitch. Yeah-Yeah hits a grounder to right field and gets a single, and that's enough for me to score the first run. Seven hitters and three runs later, the Sandlot team was gearing up to play in the field.

"Well," Maury Wills huffs as he walks over to the dugout. "Thanks for the warning, Kitty." She just laughs.

"I told ya," she grins. "They're going places."

"Damn straight," he smiles, ducking into the dugout. "That one kid's gonna be a motherfucking Babe Ruth someday." I hear Maury mumble this as he sits down, and instantly wonder who he's talking about. Probably Kenny.

Kitty sneaks up behind me as I'm putting on my glove and wraps her arms around my waist, nestling her face into the crook of my neck. "It's you, ya know," she murmurs into my neck. "He's talking about you." I'm kind of, sort of, a little bit shocked, to say the least. My _hero_ thinks I'm gonna be a…a legend? It's…it's a dream come true. The other part of my brain, that's not focusing on Kitty's warm breath against my neck, that is, reminds me to get the hell onto the field, and Kitty seems to have drawn the same conclusion. She gently nudges me towards his shortstop position, and heads back to the dugout. I watche as she high-fives Ron Fairly as they pass at the entrance, before turning and jogging into position.

Kenny's in the zone. And it's kind of fucking beautiful.

His first pitch is a strike, and I just decide to take that one as a good omen. Everyone cheers, and Don Drysdale even runs out of the dugout to slap him a high-five. Ron Fairly hits a foul ball the next time, and then finally manages to hit it out to left field, picking up two bases. Jim Gilliam comes up to bat, and soon enough, both teams find their flow. I just survey my masterpiece throughout the inning, grinning.

Ham manages to tag one of their players out at home plate, and I don't think I've ever been more proud than when I hear the umpire shout "Out!" Yeah-Yeah tags one player out, too, and Scotty catches a fly ball (and then promptly almost faints). Soon enough, it's 3-4 and the Sandlot is back to bat.

I'm up, of course, and I smile because, _God_, this just feels _right._ I dig his foot in and twist around to get ready, and I see _the one and only_ Maury Wills wink at me from the shortstop position.

It's not quite as good of a hit as his last one, but I manage to pick up a double. Next thing I knew, I was explaining the name "Yeah-Yeah" to the second baseman, too.

"Man," the baseman laughs. "I'd kill to have a name like that."

I laugh with him, but then Yeah-Yeah's about to hit the ball and I just take off, glancing briefly to check if the ball was caught or a foul or what, but it's a pretty nice ball down center field and I see it hit the ground, so I just put my head down and round third.

Minor problem. The catcher's got the ball.

I start back towards third, but the catcher throws it. Back to home, and the third baseman throws it. And slowly, I start to grin. Just another pickle, and I'm the goddamn pickle king.

I hear my team cheering as I feint n' rubba leg the catcher out of position, and I sprint for home. There has never been anything more satisfying in all of my life than the "Safe!" from the umpire that follows (except for maybe Kitty…cuz she'd kick his ass if she was less important to him than a word…probably).

My team mobs me when I duck back into the dugout. "You just rubba legged the Dodgers," Ham announces. "When we get back, I'mma bake you a motherfucking cake."

"We don't need a fire, Ham," I hear someone call from the other side and I laugh, sitting down at the end of the batting line and watching as Ham unglues himself from the celebration and walks out to home plate, still grinning like mad.

_Yeah,_ I decide. This is exactly what I am meant to do.

**Kitty POV**

I'm not surprised when Benny is made first batter. And I'm not even slightly phased when he runs around the first three bases like lightning and scores a run and pretty much just puts every other player out there to shame. When the teams switch, I'm not even surprised to hear Maury say that Benny's gonna be the next Babe Ruth.

But Benny is.

So I walk over and remind him that _yeah, he's kind of fucking incredible_ and I go to sit down on the other side of the dugout with the Dodgers.

"That's one special kid," Maury grins at me. But I doesn't think about baseball. I think about how he's so sweet and how he cares and he tickles me when I get sad and kisses every inch of my face when I get pissed off about something and _oh god_ summer's kind of going fast but I think about the odd days in between when nothing especially interesting happened and we just cuddled and talked and I think about, and this time it's not as scary, the way Benny barged in and saved me when I really needed him and how he let me sleep in his bed last night and watched over me the whole time and _Benny_.

And you know why it's not scary?

Because Benny _cares_ about me. And he'll be there next time, and he'll be there forever. It sounds stupid and immature and completely naïve but I can just _feel_ it.

I notices a stupid smile on my face but I can't seem to bring myself to care. "Yeah," I agree with him. "He sure is."

Maury smiles softly at me and wraps an arm around my shoulders. "And if he ever hurts you…" he warns. I just smile.

"I know," I chuckle. "But he won't. Besides, I'd like to think I could take care of it if he did."

Maury laughs. "I'm sure you could." He kisses the side of my head.

A couple minutes of joking around later, I hear the umpire scream "Out!" and I laugh as Daryl Spencer stomps back in and huffs, "How? _How_ in God's name is this natural? They're fucking amazing." He plops down next to Jim Gilliam and Maury raises an eyebrow as he stands up, getting ready to bat.

"What happened?" he asks, laughing.

Daryl pouts. "The catcher tagged me," he complains. "They're, like, teenagers! How!?" he demands.

Maury just chuckles and jogs out to home plate, and I laugh and gives him a hug. "What'd I tell you?" I grin, and Daryl smiles back.

"That one boy of yours is easily better than a lot of guys I've played," he tells me, and I'm pretty damn sure my eyes just light up.

"I don't doubt it," I declare. "For him, baseball is life." Daryl nods approvingly.

Soon enough, the second inning is over, too, and it's tied 6-6.

The game goes on the same way for a while, each team doing well, the Dodgers praising the Sandlot boys, and me talking to everyone in between.

It's in the seventh inning that it happens and everything falls into place. And the eighth inning when I cries in front of the entire team for the first time.

In the seventh inning, Benny returns to bat. He's managed to run every time except once in the fourth inning, when he hit two fouls and got one strike on his second time up to bat.

The Dodgers think they have him down. They're so wrong, though. They can't even begin to fathom how this kid beats them in speed and has rubba legged them in three separate pickles. And Benny's about to prove them all wrong again.

He gets to third before being stopped, and leads off. I see Benny lead off and head back to base twice before the pitcher winds up.

The third time Benny leads off, the pitcher doesn't look around. He doesn't turn around to get Benny out. Benny's got a lead-off, and he sees the pitcher wind up. I trust Yeah-Yeah. Yeah-Yeah'll hit it, I can feel it. And I know Benny can feel it, too.

Benny runs. He all-out sprints. The pitcher sees him too little too late, right after he's thrown the ball. And guess what? Yeah-Yeah hits it. It's a grounder to the side, to make sure Benny has plenty of time to get to the base. And for the first time, I realize exactly how in sync this team is.

Benny slides…safe! Benny stole home!

This time, it's not just the Sandlot team that mobs him. The catcher stares at him in disbelief, before slapping him a high-five. The pitcher jogs in to congratulate him, and so does everyone else. It's an incredible play, especially considering the age of the player in question. As I fight through the crowd, I hear the voice of Maury Wills ask, "Think you can teach me that, kid?" I grin, before finally finding myself face-to-face with Benny. I wrap my arms around him, completely and semi-unrighteously giddy because he just did what most players _dream_ to do.

"You're kind of a jerk," I wink, and Benny raises an eyebrow at me in confusion.. "You see," I continue, "I _used_ to be the best kid on this diamond," I laugh. "Now it's you."

I lead him back to the dugout, everyone still congratulating him, and I sit down next to him, leaning my head on his shoulder. He plays with the ends of my hair while I fiddle with his fingers.

"You're sort of fantastic," I mention to him softly. "You know that?"

He turns his face into my hair and smiles against it. "You know you are too?"

I turn my face to his and peck him on the lips, before Ham screams "PDA!" and throws his glove at us. We both glare at him, and he shrinks down. "Time to switch sides?" he tries to explain. Just then, Don Drysdale walks in.

"This boy givin' you trouble?" he asks in a deeper-than-usual voice. Ham squeaks and runs out to put on his catcher equipment.

"Thanks," I grin, glad that someone's on my side. Benny kisses my cheek quickly and runs out to shortstop, and I just go red when Don wiggles his eyebrows at me.

It's the eighth inning that hits me hard, though. Benny's rounding third, about to score an in-field homerun, and he slides in. The umpire declares him safe, and everyone is about to congratulate him when everything comes crashing down for me.

He's hit his head. I don't know how, only that he spun a little more than usual sliding in and that his helmet is nowhere to be seen. Everything seems fine for a minute as he shakes his head and stands up, but it's clear that there's something off when he almost immediately falls back down to the ground.

I don't think too much of it, jogging out of the dugout, when the catcher, Johnny Roseboro, holds up his hand for me to stop. He looks stricken.

"Stay back," he says grimly. "Kid's unconscious."

And I stop.

"What?" I shriek and I start running to home plate, only to be held back by Ham.

He restrains me by picking me off the fucking ground, but I'm still kicking and demanding to know what happened. "He's been knocked unconscious before," Ham tries to reason with me. "Just give him some room." I know he's right, but I still wanna see him. Kenny comes over and blocks my view of him, shushing me and stroking my hair, and I just sorta collapse and fall limp. Ham puts me back on the ground and DeNunez and Smalls wrap their arms around me.

The umpire and Johnny and Maury all run over and begin to do some sort of voodoo medical shit, but all I can think about is _what the hell happened to Benny?_

They carry him to the dugout and lie him down on the seats. I'm still being preliminarily restrained, because apparently I could be "dangerous to the healing process."

_Well, fuck that._

"I'm so sorry," Johnny mutters over and over, and I know I can't blame him but I just want to see _Benny._

It's seven minutes later when Benny wakes up. And I'm so relieved I _actually break down crying._

And the teams can't just _not let me see him_ so they part and I stumble over to him blindly and he sits up, completely alert because _oh my god I'm crying again_ and _what the actual fuck why am I crying_. I don't know why I'm crying, and I'm immediately utterly embarrassed and I just want to cry more because _fuck I was so worried_.

"Baby," Benny whispers in my ear as he pulls me onto his lap and _he's okay_ and _I'm crying_ and _holy shit why am I crying_? "Baby, what's wrong?"

And the moment just feels _good_ and almost _intimate_ cuz their faces are so close he can feel the heat from her tears (or so he claims later) and I decide that I'm just being an emotional teenage girl and _oh god why can't everyone just leave me alone?_

Apparently, my mental bond with the team is as strong as ever, because DeNunez and Ham manage to herd everyone out of the dugout.

It takes me a minute to realize that Benny is still hugging me and asking me what's wrong, and I calm down just enough to choke out, "O-oh _god,_ Benny, it's j-just that y-y-you were lying there s-so m-m-motionless and _B-Benny_ I-I've lost everyone I c-c-cared about and I-I didn't want you t-to be n-n-next!" I feel kind of insane, wailing like this, and I _know_ that everyone can hear me and I know Maury knows my whole story, because Maury's a nice, caring person and was the first one to comfort me when I showed up confused as to why my uncle gave me bruises that first day by taking me out for milkshakes and talking to me and _damn, Benny couldn't have picked a better idol._ And I know Maury well enough to know that he's flinching at every word and suppressing the urge to come in and just hug me 'til the world ends, but I'm kind of thankful that he doesn't because right now all I need is _Benny, Benny, Benny._

"I'm never going anywhere," he whispers. "No matter how hard you try to make me."

And we don't talk again as he just coos and shushes me and rubs my back as my whimpers turn to hiccups and I bury my head into his chest. When I'm finally calm, we go out to face everyone else, and DeNunez just kisses the top of my head and Ham and Maury wrap me in a bear hug, and soon enough, everyone else joins the group hug. And I smile because I'm just so _damn lucky_ to have them. All of them.

The game ends 16-14 (or something like that, we kinda lost track), but nobody really cares because we all had fun. The Sandlot team had the time of their lives and met their idols, and the Dodgers got a glimpse into the future of baseball. Benny was safe, and I was calm. And everybody felt like winners that day.

**Benny POV**

The next day, I find myself forbidden from playing baseball under the threats of Mama and Kitty, so the gang gathers in my living room and watches the Dodgers game instead.

It's not as good as playing baseball, but it's the Dodgers so it's the next best thing.

Right now, we're all particularly interested in watching Maury Wills try to steal second, waiting for just the right moment to make his move.

"Yeah, yeah," Yeah-Yeah crows. "Here he comes! He's gonna steal second!"

But I shake my head, completely serious. I don't joke around when it comes to baseball. "Nah," I disagree. "He ain't, not yet." I watches Maury intensely, still hardly believing that I've actually met him. Maury's on second, taunting the pitcher. He's got an almost suicidal lead-off, but almost.

Maury Wills is my hero for a couple reasons: he plays for the Dodgers, he is a nice enough guy, he plays the same position as I do (shortstop), but most of all, Maury is well on his way to breaking the stolen bases record. In fact, I had a feeling this year was the year that Maury would break the old record of 96 bases in a single season by Ty Cobb in 1915.

So I'm a baseball history buff. So sue me.

I could tell the whole gang couldn't wait for Wills to go. They're all tryin ta call when he's gonna go, but none of them have it right. All I hear for a while is, "He's gonna go, Benny. Here he goes, man. Right now, watch, watch. There, there!"

But I lean forward seriously. "No," I insist. "Not yet."

I kind of wish everyone would shut up do I could concentrate, but I know these boys well enough to know that if I asked them to, they'd just get louder. Maury Wills would become a legend for he would do, though, and I didn't really count on missing it.

As I watch the game intensely, I mutter, "He's…gonna…go…riiiight…now."

Just as I finish his sentence, television-Maury sprints for second, sliding in just as I leans back and smile to myself. _And score two for Rodriguez,_ I decide.

The gang stares at me for a while. "How'd you know that? How'd you guess? How'd you know?" But I don't pay too much attention to them. My mind is still on 10 words a certain Dodger shortstop muttered yesterday…

"That one kid's gonna be a motherfucking Babe Ruth someday" repeats in my mind, over and over, until DeNunez snaps me out of my trance.

"Hey, guys? Where's Kitty?"

And just like that I feel like slapping myself in the face, because I don't really have a cover story for Kitty. She's talking to her uncle about what he does when he's drunk, and explaining why all three of them have some not-so-nice looking bruises on their faces. But if I tell the team that, I'd have to tell them everything, and that's not my story to tell. But I tell them simply, "She's with her uncle."

"They watching the game together?" Ham asks.

"Not exactly."

It's probably pretty clear that I don't want to say more, though, so they leave it at that. They talk for a while, mostly about when I'm gonna be able to play again.

"Mama says a couple days," I pout. "As long as I can play on the 4th of July." This sends the boys on a whole other conversation, and I'm left to watch my baseball game in peace.

True to his word, Ham walks out and back in two hours later with a fucking cake in his arms, but it's kind of obvious (especially by the handwriting that iced the cake) that Ham did _not_ bake that cake.

Ham sees me staring at him and snaps, "So my sister made it. It's still cake!"

I laugh and agree and Ham cuts me the first (and biggest) slice. As I'm wolfing it down, the door slams open, and Kitty stalks in, throwing herself onto the couch next to me.

"How…umm…are you?" I ask, completely terrified and casting nervous glances towards the curious looks of my teammates and towards the delicious cake in my hands that seems to have unwittingly entered a 'danger zone.' What? It's a _really_ good cake.

And besides, I've already lost baseball! Do I have to lose my beautiful cake, too?"

Beside me, Kitty grumbles, "I've been better." Then suddenly she does a double take and I notice that she's staring at my cake.

I shrink down and shield my cake from her, looking around desperately to see if there's any left. There is, _thank god_.

"There's a slice over there?" I offer, but Kitty just keeps staring at my cake, glancing briefly at my face to confirm that _yes, she does want cake_. "For God's sake Ham!" I panic, holding my cake even further away from my apparently very hungry girlfriend. "Get the girl a slice of cake!"

Ham springs into action, neatly sliding the cake onto one of my mother's plates and sliding it across the table to Kenny who hands it over the couch to Smalls who sticks it right under Kitty's nose.

Thankfully, Kitty's attention is diverted away from my piece of cake to her own slice, and the four let out a collective sigh of relief while everyone else laughs their asses off.

As I take another bite of cake, refocus on the Dodgers game, and wrap my arm around a now-happily distracted Kitty, I think to myself that maybe life without baseball _will_ be tolerable for a couple of days.

But as Kitty finishes her piece and begin to eye Smalls' half-finished one, I start to think that this healing shit better hurry itself up before somebody gets hurt.

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><p><strong>AN: Next up, NIGHT GAME! **

**Hey, I just met you!  
><strong>**And this is crazy!  
><strong>**But I need motivation...  
><strong>**So, review, maybe?**

**Haha thanks for reading! I hope you liked it!**


	11. Nightgames and Bittersweet Memories

**A/N: GUYS I UPDATED. Y'all should definitely thank my winter break. No homework, no sports, just lots of writing time. I mean, two chapters in a week? How great is this?  
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**caught-offsides: **Thanks for reviewing, and I'm glad you liked the chapter! Enjoy!**  
><strong>

**chickenleg718: **You know what...I'll think about it but I think Benny would have to be a little older. Although I'm not completely sure what you meant by "and then phillips could take him over." Take over for Benny in the game? Because...I'm not sure I would allow that. But I really like the quote and the idea, and I'll probably use it sometime, whether in those exact circumstances or not. I'm thinking maybe towards the end...or in a sequel if I end up doing one. I'm not sure about the sequel yet...I'm just thinking about it. Anyways, thanks so much for reviewing, and enjoy the chapter!**  
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**The Starkiller: **It IS kickass. THAT is a kickass name. Haha I think its cool that you're into sci-fi. My brother likes Star Wars a lot, so your comment made his day. LOL thanks for the review! Hope you like this chapter!**  
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**hockeychick19: **I believe you. You even seem awesome over computer, and that can't be easy. And I UPDATED JUST FOR YOU! Thanks for the review, and I hope you enjoy this chapter, too!**  
><strong>

**kmp: **Thanks! And I'm glad you liked the chapter. Thank you for reviewing, and here's your update! Enjoy!**  
><strong>

**And finally...I'd like to give a shout-out to mah favorite person EVA...DarkestShadow98. I'm not exactly sure what happened to her...she reviewed chapter 3 and kept reviewing, keeping me motivated until chapter 8. She hasn't reviewed the last two chapters (I'm afraid something awful has happened...jk) but if you're reading, DarkestShadow98, I hope you know that you're awesome, and that sometimes I go back and read your reviews for motivation. I don't really care if you never review again because you've already given me more motivation through your reviews and your loyalty than I could have ever hoped for when I started this story. You rock, and I love you! I think I've been writing more than usual in the hopes that you'll see one of these alerts in your email and read my silly story and revi-...wait...is this your evil plan? It may be working. Anyways, you're awesome! And thanks for everything you did!  
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**READ ON!  
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><p><strong>Kitty POV<strong>

Sitting alone in my room is probably not the _best_ way to spend the 4th of July, but it'll have to do.

My uncle's throwing his annual 4th of July party and he invited all his friends from New York. And all the Dodgers players. And, worst of all, the guys he watches the baseball games with.

I tried to explain everything to him. My uncle, I mean. I really tried. I told him all about the way he shouts at me and how his friends beat me to the ground and try to rape me or something in drunken movements. And I told him how Benny saved me. But then he looked up at me; his eyes were so broken. My mom, his sister, was his everything. He's never been married because I guess he's too in love with his job. I think he would hate himself if he did anything to hurt the only piece of her left.

So he says to me, "Please don't tell me I hurt you like they do."

I tried to keep my promise to Benny, I really did. But…I couldn't.

"No," I lied. "All _you_ do is shout."

Uncle might be talking to his friends right now, but how should I know. I went to my room and locked the door. But he promised me they wouldn't come over for games ever again. He seems to think he can find new game-watching-buddies. He hid all the alcohol before they got here, which I guess is a step forward.

But that wasn't the worst of it.

A couple days after I talked to him, he turned to me over breakfast. "So…_Benny_…"

I could have slapped myself. Leave it to him to pick up on _that_. "Yes?" I answered as calmly as I could.

"You like him," he accused, smirking madly at me.

I grinned. "I better. He's my boyfriend." And with that, I ran outta the house, shouting a half-hearted "Bye!" as the door slammed shut. Uncle Dan hasn't mentioned it since, but every time I announce I'm going to the sandlot, he gives me this look, grinning with both eyebrows raised, and he gives me Dodgers things to give to him as presents and makes him food for me to bring to the sandlot. He's trying to get Benny's family to come over for dinner sometime, and he's even the one who had me tell Benny about his new nickname.

Apparently, the day after the Benny-conversation happened, Uncle Dan went to check up on "his boys," which is what he calls his team. And then, if you can believe it, he _asked_ them about Benny. According to Uncle, they've all dubbed Benny "The Jet." I told Benny about it, and Benny was probably more thrilled about it than you can imagine.

"It's cuz of the stolen base," I explained, referring to the time he stole home. "They think you're like this god of baseball sent to teach them your secrets. Or something."

So maybe I exaggerated a little.

Maybe.

I look out at the fireworks and the block party a couple streets over and shake my head. No way I'm missing a block party.

I sprint downstairs, locating Uncle almost immediately, saying 'hello' to some of the Dodgers players I saw on my way over. "I'm gonna go check out the block party," I tell him as I grab my coat.

Kissing my cheek, he replies, "Alright, but be back before 12."

I told him I would and head out the door, beginning to trudge down the empty street in the cold. I'm about a block away from the party when someone - make that _two_ someone's - run up from behind me, each grab one of my hands, and continue pulling me in the same direction, but at a run.

I'm nearly pulled off my feet, but manage to catch my balance and ask, "What the hell?" Then I realize I recognize the back of one of the heads. _Benny._ I look to the other and see that it's Scotty. "You tryina kill me, Rodriguez?"

Scotty barks out a laugh, and Benny turns and runs backwards while Scotty slows down to barely-a-jog to accommodate. Benny stares at me incredulously. "It was _his_ idea!" he complains. He points at Scotty, who tosses me an apologetic smile.

"I don't really care _whose_ idea it was! Just…slow down. I wanna see the party." Both boys begin to walk next to me as I look around at the block party.

There are dads in aprons grilling hotdogs n' burgers on their barbeques serving little children, who, in addition to the food, are clutching some "Red Devil" fireworks, waiting for the sun to finally set completely. The moms are pouring iced tea, chatting and gossiping away happily, pausing every once in a while to kiss their husbands on the cheek when they pass the grill. It's everything a 4th of July party should be.

Benny, Scotty, and I catch up to the gang eventually, including Ham, who's holding a hotdog in each hand. _That's disgusting,_ I think as I watch him scarf them both down like he's dyin' or something.

Unfortunately, we can't stay. "Nightgame," Benny explains. "Only one a year, on the 4th of July. We play 'til they stop shootin' off fireworks." So, I grab a burger from one of the grills and we all march off just as someone lights up a whole row of fireworks.

Dads and kids all rush to the curb while the moms just smile and keep talking. I stop as I watch the fireworks explode into beautiful little lights in the dark sky.

I've always loved fireworks. Something about them just seems…magical. The way they light up the sky is unbelievable. And I can prove they're magical; I've seen pictures of fireworks at Disneyland in the papers sometimes. Even through the black and white pictures, the fireworks are breathtaking. And besides, Disneyland's the most magical place in the world, so they wouldn't have fireworks unless they were truly magical, right? I've always wanted to go to Disneyland on 4th of July, but Uncle always throws a party. Hell, I've always wanted to go to Disneyland _period_, but Uncle's busy and I guess I don't _need_ to.

But someone else must think fireworks are as beautiful as I do, right?

Sighing, I realize that it doesn't really matter as long as they still manage to take my breath away. I'm kind of crazy like that. I've seen fireworks lotsa times, but I just can't get enough of them. I don't know if it's because they only come once a year or if it's just because the lights are so pretty, but every time I see them it's like the first time I saw the lights all over again.

I don't know how long I stood there, transfixed by the colors, but when I finally looked back down, I was alone and the boys were nowhere to be found. Shaking my head, I start towards the sandlot. I wrap myself tighter in my coat, feeling oddly cold now that I'm no longer distracted by the fireworks. Or Benny.

When I get to the sandlot, though, I'm enchanted. I'm enchanted because everyone is staring at Benny. Because there stands Benny at home plate, his bat slung second-naturedly over his shoulder, fireworks exploding behind him…he looks like a professional ball player.

You know when it's dark and there's a light behind someone and all you can see is a dark outline? Well, that's it. All I can see is a dark outline of my beautiful Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez with his bat, and I can't help but think that I wish I had camera. Because this moment is more magical than the fireworks.

He looks beautiful; like a real baseball player under the lights. This kid really is going to be part of the big leagues someday. I can feel it.

**Benny POV**

Once the fireworks started, that's our cue. The whole team begins to sprint towards the field and I sprint ahead, assuming Kitty can take care of herself.

Yeah, I was wrong.

One we get to the field, we all take our positions and, like always, I glance over to Kitty's usual spot and grin, but my grin falters almost immediately. Because she's not there.

"Where's Kitty?" I ask, just loud enough to be heard above the fireworks. The boys all swivel to look at Kitty's spot and shrug.

"I dunno," Bertram mutters. "Let's just play, though." I shake my head. She's _missing!_ How am I the only one who cares?

Ham seems more pissed than worried. "Dammit, Kitty," he complains. "You were _right _behind me." DeNunez grins, but shakes his head.

"C'mon, Benny-man. She knows where we are. She can figure it out."

"But what if she was kidnapped?" I complain.

Timmy snorts. "Yeah, right, man. Who's gonna kidnap her?"

"Who's gonna kidnap her?" Repeat…well…_repeats_.

"I don't know!" I pout. No one takes anything seriously. They don't take baseball serious enough and they don't take missing person cases serious enough. "A Yankees fan?"

Smalls stares at me. "She probably just got distracted, Benny! She'll be here later!"

"Yeah, yeah! She's smart! But these fireworks ain't gonna last forever."

Yeah-Yeah's words hit me. We only got the fireworks for a couple hours. We gotta play baseball._ Baseball._ And somehow, that's all it takes to distract me from the case of the missing Kitty. She'll show up eventually.

Somewhere in the back of my mind it registers that _damn, Rodriguez. You are an awful boyfriend._

But its baseball, so it's hard to care.

The whole team plays hard for a while, throwing snap throws, catching basket catches, and snatching grounders. Benny cherishes this time, before they all get caught up with the fireworks, because it's just really good baseball.

Everybody plays better on the nightgame; we play like we did at Dodger Stadium. We play like a well-oiled machine. I guess the lights make us feel like we're in a huge stadium, playing amongst the legends.

I have a theory that we beat the Dodgers because of that feeling. They're used to it. They're used to the feeling of playing on a perfect field under some huge lights with professional equipment. But we aren't. We fix up the sandlot on the first day of summer with broken tools that out parents and our neighbors don't have any use for anymore, we sure as hell don't have stadium lights, and we play with splintering bats, beat up gloves, and a, more often than not, baseball we conned people into paying for.

So it was special for us, like an adrenaline rush. I know we wouldn't be able to beat the Dodgers if both of our teams had the same circumstances. Hell, we're just kids. But we beat them because…honestly because we felt like we had to. We had to impress them, had to impress our heroes.

That's the secret, though. If you imagine the big-times. That's what got me so good at baseball. As long as you imagine the lights, the confidence comes and you can do just about anything. Soon enough, the lights came naturally.

I shake my head, clearing my thoughts. Time for baseball. I knock the dirt from my worn-out sneakers with my bat before twirling the bat, winking at DeNunez. I cock the bat back and coil around my back leg, waiting for the pitch.

DeNunez throws me a fastball, and I crank it out to left field. Just as the ball connects with the bat, more fireworks explode above us.

_Damn._ The boys are officially lost. They start to stare and marvel at the fireworks, and I watch the ball land near Smalls. Rolling my eyes, I turn to look at the entrance, hoping Kitty will walk up soon.

No sooner than I think this, Kitty walks up and, for some reason, stops dead. She's just staring at me…it's kinda uncomfortable. She's just…staring…did I do something wrong?

But soon enough, Smalls throws the ball to DeNunez and the game is back on.

The game goes on for a while. But DeNunez pitches the ball and I crank it out to the fence just as the last firework light dies out. It's nearly midnight, so we wait for the next round of fireworks to light up the field so we can find the ball and keep going, but the next round of fireworks never comes.

So we leave the ball, hopefully it'll still be there tomorrow. But with the streetlights off, we quickly discovered that there's no way home. It's pitch black.

"The streetlights are usually still on…" I mutter, barely making out the people around me.

Kitty stomps her foot. "Don't matter if they're 'usually' on. I was supposed to be home by midnight."

"Street lights turn out at midnight," Ham points out. "You already missed that one."

"You want my uncle to get more mad?" she snaps. Ham shakes his head. Suddenly, Smalls speaks up.

"If you wanna borrow my flashlight..."

Everybody's head snaps towards Smalls. "You brought a flashlight?" they ask incredulously.

"Yeah," he shrugs. "Mom made me. Turned out she was right."

I could tell that most of the time, this would incite some teasing, but it's dark and it's cold, and dammit I wanna go home. Or inside somewhere. Honestly, Mama doesn't expect me home, and neither does any of the other guys' moms.

We always just stay at one person's house after 4th of July, and all of our moms just have to cross their fingers and hope it isn't their house.

We all walk Kitty home while she laughs and play swats at our chests while we insist that it's to protect her, calling us 'such gentlemen!' She looks at me and pouts. "I'm cold," she announces.

So I wrap my arms around her and nuzzle my face in her chest.

"Yeah, right. Like that's gonna-" she starts to say, but stops short and instead tells me, "Woah…you're so warm…"

The boys all laugh as we reach her house, but we find her uncle sitting on the porch. "Ummm…damn."

**Kitty POV**

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Uncle asks.

I shrug, and reply honestly, "Not a clue." Benny's arms around me are tense, and I know he hasn't forgotten what he saw that night. But we have bigger problems, because something sparks in Uncle's mind and his eyes land on Benny.

"Run," I mutter.

But Benny just stares at me. "What?"

However, it's too late. Uncle Dan recognizes Benny. "This wouldn't happen to be Benjamin Rodriguez, would it?" he asks.

"Shoulda ran," I whine. Louder, I say, "Uncle Dan, you should probably go inside. It's cold out here." Uncle winks at me and walks inside. I turn around to see all the boys stifling laughter.

"Meeting the parents, huh 'Benjamin'?" Ham mocks. Benny twirls his baseball bat, though, and Ham shuts up.

"Speaking of parents," I cut in, "when are yours expecting you home?"

All the boys shrug. "Never."

"Perfect!" I grin and grab Kenny and Ham and begin dragging them towards the door. "Come on!" I open the door, and Uncle's sitting at the coffee table reading the sports section of the newspaper. _Typical._

"Hey, Uncle?" He looks up from his paper, and I put on puppy-dog eyes. Not that they're really necessary; Uncle Dan has been doing pretty much everything I want since I told him about _that_ night. "It's really dark. And cold," I complain. He raises his eyebrows and gives me his _go on_ look. "Can we all stay here? In the living room? Just for tonight," I add hastily. As long as we stay in the living room, he should have no problem.

He thinks about it for a minute, before relenting. "I guess they've taken care of you all summer," he mumbles, kind of miffed at not having found a good enough reason to say no. "But just remember…I'm right upstairs."

"Uncle!" I snap. "There's nine of them. What do you take me for?" Uncle shrugs and yawns.

"There's food in the fridge and baseball games on the VCRs. Kitty, you know where the extra blankets are. I'm gonna…I'm gonna go to bed," he calls as he walks off to his room.

The door slams shut and Ham turns. "Ummm…what the hell was that?"

"That was me avoiding an awkward confrontation between Uncle and Benny," I tell him, throwing pillows on the floor. I walk over to the closet and try to reach the top shelf where we keep the blankets. Unfortunately, I'm too short for that. "Little help?" I call to Benny, who, I might add, made his way directly to the VCRs. _Naturally._

Benny laughs at my shortness (and me) and walks over. He puts his hands on my waist and counts, "1…2…3," before lifting me up. I grab the blankets and as he puts me down, I swat at him and throw the blankets at Ham's smirking face.

"You guys are so domestic it kills me," Ham mutters, throwing the blankets over the pillows. The second that's done, all the boys plop down on the pillows and stare at Benny and me.

"What?"

"Cut the crap," Bertram laughs.

"Yeah, yeah. Something happened."

Denial kicks in and Benny and I laugh nervously. "Excuse me?"

"Something you're not telling us."

We stop laughing and the boys stare at us intensely, deadly serious. Benny glances at me and I sigh. "Fine. Fine. Make room and I'll tell you."

The boys all rush to make room and Benny and I settle ourselves in. "Wait!" Ham announces. "We need popcorn."

"I'll go make some," Benny laughs, leaving me alone to fend for myself against a mob of story-wanting teenage boys. _Damn you, Rodriguez._

"Umm…here's the thing," I tell them. I shut my eyes tight so I don't have to look at them and know I've kept this from them. "When the Dodgers have a game, my uncle invites friends over to watch it with him sometimes because he doesn't always feel like watching it from the stadium when it gets cold late at night. But his friends….are awful. They're actually terrible people. And they all get drunk because I guess sports and beers go together. And…when they get drunk enough…they hit me. And make passes at me. And…well, Benny followed me one night and got caught up in everything and, I mean, he saved me. That's why I took all of you to Dodger Stadium that one day…as a sort of 'thank you.'"

I open my eyes and each and every one of them has their mouth open wide. I don't realize I'm shaking until Kenny and Scotty crawl over and wrap me in a hug, quickly followed by the rest of the boys. They all pull away, and Squints asks, "Your uncle knows about this, though, right?"

Benny walks in with the popcorn and says, "Yeah."

But I shift away as he hands out the popcorn. "Not exactly…"

Benny's mouth, which had been previously stuffed with popcorn, falls open. He chews and swallows before hissing, "What do you mean 'not exactly?'" The boys all fall silent.

"Look," I sigh. "I told him about what his friends do and I told him about how he shouts at me. I just…left out one little detail."

"Little detail?" he seethes.

My face goes red and I turn towards him, looking him dead in the eye. "Okay, maybe not a 'little' detail, _Benjamin_, but I still ain't telling him. He doesn't deserve it, and he's put away the alcohol anyways, so what's it matter?"

Benny's jaw clenches and he stays silent for a long time, but finally, he nods. "Fine. But this ain't over," he tells me icily. I hang my head, partly in shame and partly in fear. I can't lose Benny.

It gets kind of awkward for a while after that, but Benny shakes his head and wraps an arm around me to tell me that while he's disappointed, he's not _really_ mad. Desperate for a change of subject, I ask, "So...how long have you boys been playing together?"

Benny grins. _Back to baseball_, I think. "Most of us have been playing together since grade school, but like, Smalls only came this summer."

"Really?" I ask. Then again, it was sort of obvious. I really didn't pay much attention at the beginning…

"Oh yeah," laughs Scotty. "Lemme tell you a story about that…"

The boys all stiffen. "No!" they protest, and I grin.

"I wanna hear the story," I announce.

The whole gang groans now because they know they've lost. "Alright," Benny grins. "Let's hear that story."

Scotty grins. "This story is not particularly flattering to me. Or anyone really. But I think you'll like it," he crows. All the boys groan again as Scotty launches into his story.

_**Flashback**_

_The boys were all playing baseball, and Scotty was spying on them. Suddenly, the gang hits a ball straight towards him, and Scotty looks up just in time. __He throws his arms over his face and ducks, which, of course, is social suicide among baseball players. _

_The ball __beans him at the glove covering his head, and __Scotty __falls back on his butt. The ball rolls a bit and comes to an "I-dare-you" stop right up against the diseased fiberglass panels of a preternatural fence. Scotty pulls his arms away from his face, and __the gang laughs__ uproariously._

"_Nice catch!" Timmy mocks._

"_Nice catch!" Repeat laughs._

_From the catcher position, Ham shouts, "__Hey! Throw the ball back!"_

"_Yeah, yeah, hurry up!"_

"_We gotta a game here, man!" Bertram complains._

_Scotty__ moves for the ball. As he goes, he sweats. "'Kay, I'll get it!" he assures them before mumbling to himself,__ "__Don't be a goofus - don't be a goofus - don't be a goofus." He reaches the fence and the ball and stops. The ball's hard to move. The force emanating from the backyard has got him, and__ a cloud of dust through the fiberglass __keeps perfect time with the monster-breathing.__ Scotty didn't know it at the time, but it was the Beast breathing. __Scotty snatches up the ball and back-pedals 10 feet. _

"_We're waiting..." Squints calls._

_Scotty throws back the ball, and his chances of getting in with these guys are over. __The ball __droops forward in the air and lands 6 feet from him. It rolls slowly up to the gang, finally coming to a dainty stop at DeNunez' feet.__ The boys __look from the ball to Scotty and start to crack up.__ Poor Scotty __walks away in tears, and says to himself,__ "__My life is over."_

_**End Flashback**_

Kitty glares at all the boys, who refuse to look her or Scotty or even Benny in the eyes. "Well, damn," she says. "Some people are just born jackasses."

"Well, you didn't hear about what happened after Smalls left," Squints squeaks, and Benny grins.

"I'm glad you mentioned that. All right, Kitty, the story gets better. Smalls, you've heard the story. Why don't you tell it? You've done good so far."

Scotty smiles at Benny, and then continues with his story.

_**Flashback**_

_It turns out someone was on Scotty's side. Benny's the only one not laughing, and he stares the whole gang down until they quiet down._

"_Come on, Benny-man," DeNunez complains. "Didn't you see that throw?" Then DeNunez imitates the throw, flipping his glove to Ham. The boys all laugh again, and Ham is truly stunned._

"_That kid has got the gaw'damned panty-waistiest arm I've ever seen," he crows._

_Squints laughs. "I seen a guy that threw that bad once. I mean, not __that__ bad, but bad enough that he hadda move in the fourth grade because everyone nicknamed him 'Bloomers.'" The boys lapse into another round of uproarious laughter, but the whole gang __shuts up at the look on Benny's face._

_Changing tactics, Benny challenges, "I bet not one of you knows how the Babe got his nickname."_

"_Easy," Ham boasts. "Cuz of the way he looked like a little kid face."_

_But Bertram immediately calls bullshit, adding, "It's just cuz he liked little kids and stuff."_

"_Wrong. The Babe was called the Babe because he was like the child of Yankee Stadium," Squints protests matter-of-factly._

"_I knew it," Benny snaps, glaring at the boys. "You're all full of crap. George Herman Ruth got his nickname because his mom died when he was just a little kid, and he hadda go live in the orphanage," Benny explains. The other boys keep deadly quiet because none of them have ever heard this before. And Benny's never wrong. "Nobody liked him there," Benny continues. "The bigger guys picked on him all the time. And he couldn't fight back when they messed with him, cuz he was just…like scared. So when they messed with him, he cried about it." There's a beat, and Benny finishes his story by telling them, "He cried…so they called him The Babe." _

_None of the boys say a word, because this hits home real good. _

_"How ya think that kid just felt?" Benny demands. Then Benny just leaves the sandlot; there's no lost baseball, no dimming lights, and no heat stroke. Benny just…leaves. But he leaves the other boys with a lesson learned. _

_**End Flashback**_

"It was the first and last time I've ever seen Benny just leave the sandlot like that," Ham recounts. "The only time in his life he didn't wanna play baseball no matter what."

Benny grins, but the boys aren't done yet. "Yeah, yeah. I mean, we all just went home after that. Our moms were askin' us about who died to make us come home early. That was the most worried I had ever seen them."

I narrow my eyes at them, annoyed with what they did, but I can't help but ask, "Why didn't y'all just keep playin' with seven?"

"Look," Kenny sighs. "Everyone knew Benny was different. I mean, we've never voted or anything, but Benny's the leader." I see Benny shrug, apparently agreeing with DeNunez.

"Humble, too," I mutter, but the story's not over.

"We followed him with like a block between us when we went home," Squints recalls. "We was afraid that if he saw us, he would chase us down the street with his baseball bat."

"Benny might seem like a normal guy," Timmy shrugs, "but he ain't. He's special."

"He's special," agrees Repeat.

Munching on his popcorn, Bertram adds, "Loyal, too. When we'd all tried out for youth league a while back, we'd all made it. But when we found out we'd haveta play for different teams, Benny said that if we couldn't play together, then we shouldn't play at all. So we stayed together. And look at us! We're still playin' and we're still together. That's why we're best buddies for freakin' life."

I grin, but none of the boys are meeting my eyes yet. They're still staring at their popcorn. "You guys are the best," I tell them, and they look up in surprise. "I still don't like what you did, but you got past that," I remind them. "But you're the best friends I coulda hoped for when I moved here. And for the record, you're _all_ pretty loyal."

All the boys smile hesitantly at me, and Benny pulls me into his lap, smiling into my hair. I grab some of his popcorn as he whispers into my ear, "Y'know, you're kinda the best thing ever, too. And…look, you don't have to tell your uncle. Unless he brings the alcohol back out," he compromises. I feel my insides get all warm and fuzzy like they've been doing a lot since I met Benjamin Rodriguez.

"Thanks," I whisper back, kissing his cheek. I knew I picked the right boy to fall for.

Ham, probably to retain a sense of normalcy, complains, "Ewww! It's like watching your parents kiss. Would you guys cut it out?"

And for once, I can't find it in myself to get mad at him. I glance at the clock, and it's just past 1:30 am, so, once we finish off the popcorn, we all lie down and fall asleep pretty much immediately.

And I dunno about the rest of the guys, but, as I lay on Bneny's chest, I dream of that day at the sandlot, the first day I met them, and nine of the best friends a girl could ask for. The whole dream doesn't make much sense, but those are the main things I could pull from it. But you can probably figure it out.

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><p><strong>AN: Hope you liked it! Reviews will be rewarded by an increase in your awesomeness level.**


	12. What Happens When Phillips Gets Involved

**AN: I AM SO SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING. Between the flu, midterms, spring break, and a major case of writer's block, I just couldn't find it in me to finish writing the chapter. BUT I DID. This chapter is a little shorter than some of the others, but I wanted to get it up because y'all have been waiting for so long. Again, SORRY!  
><strong>

**But thanks for the lovely reviews!**

**kmp**: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!

**hockeychick19**: OMG the flashback was like my favorite part so far and I'm the one writing it! Anyways, thanks for reviewing and I'm so, SO sorry about the wait on this chapter!

**The Starkiller**: Probably one of my favorite pen names I've seen. Anyways, thanks for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**peperment butler**: Thanks! I hope you like it! Oh, and thanks for reviewing!

**alice in the sweetland**: Thanks so much for reviewing and I'm really glad you liked it. Oh, and also is teh pen name supposed to be a play on Alice in Wonderland or am I just an idiot?

**Sara**: Thank you so much for saying that! I dunno, it just made me feel really good. And I reread the last paragraph, and I guess I could end it, but I think I'm gonna keep going with it. I wanna make it to the end of the movie, and we still have that whole thing with the Beast. How could I leave that out? I'm not mad at you for saying that or anything, don't worry. I guess I was tired of the cliffhanger endings and wanted to give something more close-ended. Anyways, thanks for reviewing!

**DarkestShadow98**: Well, I guess it's MY turn to apologize for not updating. And don't worry, I don't blame you for not reviewing. By the way, five projects? Yikes. Kitty's a pretty overdramatic person, and so is Benny, so I understand how you thought some of the story comes off as a little soap-opera-ish. But I have friends that melt down (legit tears and everything) when the tip of their pencils break. They have a lot else going on in their lives, though. I guess it kinda depends on the person and their experiences. And I like to think that teh Dodgers went easy on the gang. Why would a professional team have to go all out against some high schoolers? I'm glad you really liked the last chapter. A lot of people said it was their favorite, and honestly, it was my favorite, too. It was fun to write. Yeah, I worked hard to make it extra-cute. They're both kinda ratchet, so they don't get a lot of cute moments. Oh, and consider your awesome quotient increased. By, like, a bajillion. That review made me smile SO BIG you don't even know. Thanks for reviewing and keeping me motivated! and again, sorry about the insane wait!

**Guest**: Thanks! Hope you enjoy!

**RandomReviewer**: Aww, thanks! And wait no more, for I have (finally) updated! Enjoy!

**Rachel**: Aww stawp it, you, you make me blush. Sorry for the wait, and thanks for the review!

**AndiWritesLyricsX**: You seriously read it all in an hour? Nice! And rest assured, I've finally updated. Thanks for reviewing, and I hope yo enjoy this chapter!

**Onwards with the story!**

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><p><strong>Benny POV<strong>

We wake up early the next morning, before it's even 7:00. I find Kitty in the kitchen, fixing up a helluva lot of bacon and eggs. "Hope none of y'all are strict Jewish," she calls. Pointing to the bacon, she adds, "I'm pretty sure this stuff ain't kosher. Now, how ya boys like your eggs?"

We give her our orders and Yeah-Yeah pops in one of the VCRs; Dodgers against the Yankees. As tempted as I am to stay and watch, I head to the kitchen instead. I'm greeted by the site of Kitty standing by a stove, hands on her hips and lips pursed, with about four pans sizzling in front of her.

Without even looking at me, she says, "Grab ten plates outta that cupboard there, would ya?" I grab the plates, and she starts piling bacon on each one of them. I snake my arms around her from behind and kiss her on the cheek. "Whatever, Rodriguez. I'm tryina cook here," she mumbles as she swats at my chest.

She puts a pile of scrambled eggs onto six of the plates. "Yeah-Yeah, Ham, Bertram, Timmy, and Tommy! Food's up!" Nodding to me, she adds, "That last one's yours."

The boys stumble into the kitchen, still half-asleep, but Ham crosses his arms and narrows his eyes at me when he walks in. "Dammit, Benny," he complains. Grabbing his food and walking back to the living room, he mutters, "Actin' like a fucking married couple or something." Faintly, we hear him sing-songing something that sounds suspiciously like _domesticated!_

Kitty and I both blush, but Kitty yells, "Someone's gotta take care of you, don't they? Not my fault Benny and I are the mature ones." Ham sticks his head back in the kitchen and she sticks her tongue out at him.

"Real mature," he chuckles, and she pouts.

"…Touché…"

Ham laughs and she corrects herself.

"Not my fault _Benny's_ the mature one."

Twirling back around dramatically, she returns her attention to the food in front of her while Ham heads back to the living room, muttering, "Well, I knew _that_..."

Kitty places a different kind of eggs on the remaining four plates and yells for DeNunez, Smalls, and Squints to get their food. Then she picks up her own plate of over-easy eggs and waltzes on into the living room.

About a half an hour later, we head out for the sandlot, but Kitty hangs back. "I'll catch up with you soon," she promises.

"Or you could come with us now," Ham suggests and she rolls her eyes.

"Wish I could," she pouts. "But I promise, I'll see you boys in like ten minutes, yeah?" She turns and heads up the stairs before any of us can protest of even say _anything_, really, but we let ourselves out and head off for the sandlot.

We get to the sandlot and start playing, still in our baseball stuff from last night. It barely takes ten minutes for me to get caught in a pickle because let's face it, Ham loves getting people into pickles. He also just loves pickles in general, and a lot of other kinds of food.

I've gotten off topic, haven't I?

Sorry.

Back to baseball.

Ham catches the ball, and as soon as I start to backtrack, he throws it to Tommy on third.

But pickles are my expertise.

I feint n' rubba leg them strategically, crossing home just as I hear two voices. One of them is clearly welcome, the other, not so much.

Kitty yells, "Hey, I'm here," and we all turn to her. Once we do, I'm pretty sure most of our mouths drop open. Instead of her usual cutoffs and baseball jerseys, Kitty's in a (kind of short, if I do say so myself) skirt and a tank top, but she still keeps her high tops on her feet. And she's wearing…_makeup_. She looks…great. But she looks…different.

"Hey," Ham complains. "What's the deal with that ridiculous getup?"

Kitty rolls her eyes. "There's a big banquet kinda thing for Dodgers people and their families today. It's like, the event of the year and I just can't miss it. It's up in Los Angeles. I just came to tell you I won't be hanging out here today, cuz I'm supposed to be heading off soon."

Just then, the other voice, that of Phillips, speaks up. "What a shame," he dismisses, before looking Kitty up and down and winking. "Although you should stick around. You look damn sexy," Phillips leers at Kitty. "You oughtta lemme take you out like that sometime. Trust me, I'll show you a good time." She rolls her eyes, and my blood begins to boil.

But Phillips turns to me and adds, "Saw that rubba leggin', Rodriguez. Nice. 'Course, it's easy when you're playin with rejects and fat kids. C'mon, Rodriguez. You could be playing with us on an Official Youth League certified big-time diamond. You'd make the all-star team easy. Why do you hang out with these rejects, man?"

I turn and march over, and the gang follows me, standing right behind me. Kitty stands off to the side awkwardly, observing. "Shut your mouth, Phillips!" I demand, pointing my baseball bat at him. Phillips just smirks at me.

"These kids shouldn't be allowed to touch a baseball. They're an insult to the game."

That's enough to do it for Ham. He tries to rush the punk, but everyone grabs him and holds him back. "Come on!" Ham shouts at him. "We'll take you on right here, right now! Come on!"

Phillips shakes his head at us condescendingly. "We play on a real diamond, Porter. You ain't even good enough to lick the dirt off our cleats." I'm tempted to just let Ham kill the kid, but Ham just feels like screaming.

"Watch yer mouth, jerk!"

"Shut up, dipshit!"

"Asshole!"

"Scab eater!"

"Butt sniffer!"

"Pus licker!"

"Fart smeller!"

"Dog crap for breakfast eatin' geek!" Phillips is getting madder and madder every passing second, continuously upping his insults, but Ham just keeps retaliating.

"You mix yer Wheaties with your mama's toe jam!"

"You bob for apples in your toilet, and you like it!" Phillips challenges. Both teams gasp, and then Ham takes things one step further.

"YOU PLAY BALL LIKE A GIRL!"

There's a silence, then I hear two people say, "What did you just say?"

Ham turns and gives Kitty a look. "You don't count, dollface. You're even _better_ than these boys. And _you_," Ham says, facing back towards Phillips. "You heard me."

"Tomorrow," Phillips tells us, shaken. "Sun-up. At our field. Be there, buffalo-butt breath."

"Count on it, pee drinkin' craphead!" Ham smirks. The Little League team leaves the sandlot, and Ham turns towards the team, smiling.

"So who's ready to kick some Little League ass?"

We all cheer, but Ham turns to Kitty. "I hope you know you're still amazing at baseball," he tells her, by way of apology.

"Whatever, Porter," she pouts. She turns to me and raises an eyebrow. "I think I'mma head out. See you later?"

"Yeah," I agree, giving her a quick peck on the cheek while Ham pounds me with his baseball glove ("Dammit, Benny, I _told_ you to quit that!"). "You'll be there to root for us tomorrow?" I ask, grinning.

"Might just hafta play," she mutters. "Cuz apparently girls can't play baseball. I'll show the smug little asshole."

We all smile and DeNunez tells her, "You should! Show those punks that even girls can beat them."

She gives him a look at the _even girls_ bit, but eventually she nods. "Good call," I laugh, while Ham just blushes. "See ya tomorrow, then."

"Alright. Bye!" she calls as she races off for the bus stop. I watch her go, shaking my head. Skirts don't really make sense on her.

**Kitty POV**

There actually is a reason I hate banquets.

They're boring as fuck.

Once I made the usual rounds to Maury and the other players and Uncle showed me off to all his sports-worker-people friends (especially to the ones that don't have children, just to make them jealous, I guess) I was left to eat rich people food (gross) and wonder what Benny and the boys were up to while I was stuck in virtual isolation.

Sure, there were people everywhere. But not a single one of them held any interest in me. I wasn't making the decisions or the homeruns. I was practically a pet to the. A pretty little pet in a short skirt. Not exactly the kind of attention I was looking for. Fun to look at, fun to greet, but to actually engage in a conversation? Nope. I couldn't _possibly_ produce anything worthwhile in a conversation.

Not that anything _they_ would have to say could interest me.

The guys cat-called at me sometimes. "Damn," they would say, just loud enough for me to hear. "Check her out."

One guy in particular got on my nerves the most. He cornered me when I left the banquet hall to try to find the restroom. "Hey," he grinned. She knew that grin, and it meant danger. She's seen it every time her uncle gets drunk out of his mind. It's reckless, wild, and never a good sign.

I ignored him.

Bad idea.

He pinned me up against the wall, murmuring in my ear, "How about you and I have some fun?"

"Go to hell," I spat, because honestly I was in a pissy mood and was definitely not in the mood to get chatted up. I missed Benny. He would come and make this guy leave. He would care about what I have to say. He would at least pretend to enjoy my presence. He wouldn't try to make a scene.

"Feisty," he grinned. "That's okay, I like 'em fiery."

I was about to start screaming, but luckily, Maury walked by just then. "Hey," Maury barked. "Back up. Leave her alone."

The guy leaves reluctantly, and I assure Maury that I'm okay, maybe a little spooked, but that I'll be fine. The rest of the evening, though, is filled with paranoia at the thought of similar incidents occurring. I just about lose my mind, checking over my shoulder and anticipating a fight.

Which is why I was so glad when it was over.

In the morning, I don't want to get up. I hadn't taken off the makeup the night before, so my eyes felt heavy with eye shadow and mascara. And I really don't want to see what kind of monster the makeup had turned me into overnight.

But I pull myself out of bed, scrape my hair back into a ponytail, and go searching for my baseball stuff.

You know, just in case.

Ever the punctual one (when it comes to baseball, at least) Benny is knocking on my door at 6:30 on the dot, giving us half an hour to head over to the field.

Which, of course, is far more time than we actually needed.

But we arrive there early, at about 6:40, before anyone else. Benny looks at me and smirks at my bag of baseball gear. I laugh, "Someone's gotta teach you sexist jerks what a girl can do."

He smiles at me and pulls me down to sit on the grass, plunking down right next to me. We lay down and look at the sky, which is still kind of dark but it's perfectly light outside anyways. He grabs my hand and I smile.

Apparently reading my mind, Benny says softly, "How did I get so lucky to have you?"

I giggle. "Oh please," I reply, "I'm obviously the lucky one here."

He grins and pulls me over until I'm more or less lying on top of him than I am next to him. I close my eyes and smile, and he nestles his face into my neck. I can feel him smiling against my skin, and we just lay there happily, enjoying the peace and each other's company.

Until, naturally, other people's company ruins it.

"Benny!" Ham snaps. "Why the fuck do you have to be all love-struck all of a sudden?" Our eyes snap open, startled by the rest of the team's sudden appearance, and glance at the other side, where the Little League team is just beginning to file in.

I lift my head up and glare at him, but Benny just laughs. "Just you wait," he tells Ham. "Soon enough, you'll find someone and be love-sick, too."

Ham shakes his head vigorously, complaining that no, _no no no_, no _way_ was that ever gonna happen.

(But it will.)

I look back across the field and manage to catch Phillips' eye, and he smirks at me. He saunters over and grins at me, glancing dismissively at Benny.

"Hey," he says nonchalantly. I narrow my eyes at him.

"What?" I sigh.

He rolls his eyes. "Didn't know we were bringing cheerleaders," he drawls, and I glare at him while Benny places a warning hand on my leg as if to say _don't take this too far._

I scoff, glancing at Benny, and tell Phillips, "Neither did I. I'm here to play." Phillips starts to laugh and my blood begins to boil. "What?" I ask. "Why is that so damn funny to you?"

Phillips just shakes his head. "Girls don't play. They _can't _play."

He turns and retreats back to the bench where his team is getting ready, and I narrow my eyes at him.

"That's what you think, asshole."

**Benny POV**

I laugh at Kitty's muttered retort, and she turns to me. "Oh, don't you start in on me, too, Rodriguez."

I wrap my arm around her shoulders. "Oh, come on," I grin. "You can't really think I'm laughing at you, can you? I'm laughing cuz I'm imagining the look on poor Phillips' face when you beat his ass."

Kitty rolls her eyes. "Whatever, Benny."

But I'm right about the look.

We're in the outfield first, but since we have 10 players, Kitty stays on the bench. "Go," she laughs when I offer for her to take my spot. "This is more about you than it is about me."

I'm about to argue back when Ham raises his catcher's mask. "PLAAAAAAAY BALLLL!"

Kitty shoos me onto the field and I go grudgingly while DeNunez takes the mound. He strikes out the first batter, but the second, grounds one towards Yeah-Yeah at short. Yeah-Yeah stabs it and fires it to first base, and the batter's outta there.

Two outs.

Phillips is up to bat, and he hits a lazy fly ball to right center field where Scotty and Bertram both run for it, shouting, "I got it. I got it." They both stop, though, and the ball drops between them. They both look at the other and blink. "I thought you had it."

Phillips rounds second, and I roll my eyes. "Somebody get it!"

Scotty picks up the ball and fires for home for all he's worth while Phillips rounds third. I watch the ball as it rockets toward home plate. Phillips slides in a cloud of dust and the ball blasts into Ham's mitt as Ham drags the baseline. The dust clears.

Ham's got him tagged.

He really didn't need to go Jackie Glesonaic on him though.

"You – are – out – of – here!" he shouts. "Out! Gone! Dead! To the moon! Roger, Wilco, over and OUT!" Ham notices us staring and abruptly stops screaming. Trying to be casual, he adds, "Ah, you're out."

_And that's three, _I think smugly.

One position swap later, I'm at bat. I offered Kitty to go first, but she shakes her head. "You're the captain," she grins. "If it makes you feel better, though, I'll go second."

I hit one to the left and run for all I'm worth. They throw it to first-I'm already gone. Throw it to second-too late. Throw it to third-I'm on my way home. Throw to home-safe!

I see the leaguers gawk at me. They probably don't see an inside the park homerun too often.

I glare at the catcher. "That's one. Get used to it."

Kitty's up, and Phillips smirks. "Want me to go easy on you, baby?"

"Nah," she shrugs easily. "Want me to go easy on _you_?"

He narrows his eyes at her and pitches. She belts it to center left field, and the leaguers chase after it. It hits the fence and bounces back, causing the outfielders at the fence to whip around and keep chasing it, disoriented. She's already nearing second.

She's halfway to third before they figure it out, firing it to the plate. She cuts back, just enough for them to throw it without creating any real momentum, and shoots back around to third. She stays.

"I know all the tricks in the book," she calls to a very annoyed Phillips. The gang cranks out shot after shot, rounds base after base, crossing home many times. Many more than the leaguers, in fact, which means that they win.

Of course, I decide that this calls for a celebration which can only mean one thing: the carnival. The boys, Kitty, and I strut along, air-batting and mime-catching. The funniest part of the walk comes when Kitty nearly decks some girls who call her a slut for hanging out with nine boys and no girls.

The giddy spirit is catching, and I rip a momentous victory slide to cheers from the others.

We head down the midway and stop at the ticket booth for the Anti-Grav, the best, scariest, most awesome ride in the whole carnival.

"I'm paying," Kitty insists. "It's your victory."

We all wanna object, as it's just as much her victory as it is ours, but none of us have the money, so instead, I settle for vowing to make this the most fun and the best night ever for her.

As she's paying, I grin at the boys. "Crack! Boom! Outta here!" I shout. "You see the looks on their faces? Did ya? It was like, 'Duh…so that's how you play baseball.'"

The boys cheer, and suddenly Bertram shushes us all. "Crap!" he complains, pulling out a little package. "I almost forgot. Chaw!"

We all gather round, 'cept Kitty, who's still at the ticket booth. I give the guy in the booth a dark look and he seems to take the hint, shoving the tickets at Kitty and turning to help the next customer.

"I was savin' it for a good time," Bertram continues.

Smalls' eyebrows knit together. "What is it?"

"Geez Smalls," Ham moans as Bertram passes it around. "I s'pose you don't know who The Babe is either. It's chaw. Plug. Wad. Chewing tobacco!"

It's Scotty's turn to sniff the stuff. "Whadda you do with it?"

Ham rolls his head back dramatically. "You're kilin' me, Smalls. You chew it, of course."

"All the pros do," DeNunez adds.

Kitty rolls her eyes. "They ain't chewin' that shit, that's for damn sure," she mutters, but no one 'cept for me hears.

"Yeah, yeah, gives you tons of energy," Yeah-Yeah adds.

Timmy grins wildly. "Let's dip."

"Let's dip," agrees Repeat.

Bertram pinches a too-huge wad for himself and stuffs it in his mouth, passing the bag around. When it gets to me, Kitty gives me a look.

"It'll make ya sick," she warns me. "None of the big-times chew it unless they're sitting on a bench. Movement don't go well with that stuff. Espeacially not the cheap kind," she explains, gesturing to the bag and the ride we're about to go on. "Don't you dare."

I consider it, but then I remember that she paid and I pass the wad on. Ham rolls his eyes at me, but says nothing.

"Smooth," DeNunez decides as he tastes it.

"Juicy," Ham adds.

Squints pops a wad in his mouth. "Tangy."

Smalls wrinkles his nose. "Kinda tastes like an ashtray smells," he observes, and suddenly I'm kinda glad Kitty talked me out of the stuff.

Bertram, on the other hand, just shrugs. "Supposed to."

Squints walks over and takes the tickets from Kitty's hand. "Let's ride."

When they let us on, Kitty drags me halfway around the wheel before we sit down. "I ain't sittin' anywhere near them."

The ride starts up, and I watch the boys as we spin round and round and round. The brown glop falls from their mouths and I'm really, _really_ glad I didn't take none of of the chaw when I see Bertram turn salmon, yellow, then green. I look away as he yawns breakfast, lunch, and dinner like a firehose, and Kitty buries her head in my shoulder while she makes a face.

"God, I hate that noise," she complains.

I also hear blood-curdling screams from the poor vom-victims. "Thanks for making us sit way over here," I mumble, and she just nods.

The ride stops, and as we disembark, a barf chain reaction ensues. Kitty and I run, screaming and laughing at the poor idiots, as they lose it.

That's when we hear the radio. Between the static, we can just barely make out, "...And the Dodgers win! 5-3 against the Yankees!"

Kitty blanches, face turning pale and white. "Oh, god," she whimpers. She grabs his hand. "You have to come with me to my house to make sure he ain't drinking," she pleads, but that's already part of my plans.

"I'm not making you face him alone," I promise, and she smiles gratefully as the boys finally catch up to us.

We cut through the sandlot alleyway, mosta the boys moaning, Ham the worst. He's swaying on his feet, but he unpockets a fistful of some disgusting glop and the guys all lose it again. Kitty and I speed up to avoid the mess.

None of us know it, but a big, bloodshot, amused eyeball watches them from a hole in the fiberglass fence. He makes some sort of guturral panting noise. The Beast is laughing at them.

When we reach Kitty's house, she leads me to a window that shows the living room. I look in, and my stomach flips. There's some guys there-different guys, but just as drunk. Kitty's uncle has a beer can in his hand.

Kitty turns and sinks down against the house in tears. I sit down next to her and pull her in for a hug, rocking her back and forth. When the tears subside, she glances up at me.

"He promised me he wouldn't," she chokes out in a whisper. "He promised."

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><p><strong>AN: Well, what's our dashing hero Benjamin Franklin Rodriguez got in store for us now? Drop a review and join us next time as Benny and our emotional heroine finally face what's been waiting for them all summer: The Beast. <strong>


	13. Kisses and Surprises

**A/N: Ugh, this chapter took me so long to write. Besides that, my parents have been trying to get me to participate in "family bonding activities." Doesn't that just sound awful? But the chapter's here now! Meanwhile, I've got 100 reviews! That's fantastic and oh my god I'm grinning so big because I didn't expect that this would ever happen! Thank you guys so much!  
><strong>

**Please don't kill me.**

**I think I'll just answer the reviews now.  
><strong>

**mindashii**: Aww! Haha I'm glad you took an hour of your life to read my silly little story. It means a lot! I'm so glad that you love it, and thank you for leaving a review!

**The Starkiller**: Ha, I didn't even think of that! But it so works! Anyways, I'm glad you enjoy my story, haha. Thanks for reviewing, and I hope you like this chapter, too!

**DarkestShadow98**: Ahhh I love you! Haha yeah, Kitty is kinda difficult sometimes, but that's why we love her, haha. And yeah, the guys just don't understand true love, ya know? Sometimes boys can be like that. Ham is still a little sexist, though, haha. Luckily we have Kitty there to set him straight. I'm sorry if there were any reasons talking about your life woulda made the review sad, because that's not cool and you seem like a pretty cool person. And this ending is a lot less sad than the last one, so that's a plus. Anyways, thanks for our lovely review, it made my day! I hope you like the chapter!

**Kassielsa**: You know, I hoped so, too. But it was so damn hard to write. I've got the next one half way done, though, so yay! Hope you like the chapter!

**hockeychick19**: I've said this a lot, too, but I shall also say it again: I LOVE YOU. Your reviews makes me happyyy. I'm sorry it took so long! Thanks for the review and I hope you like the chapter!

**PPGXRRB 4EVA**: What's the penname stand for. My first thought was that it was a pairing for something, but I can't figure it out. Anyways, thanks for the review, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**BookwormStrawberry**: I know! And ahhhh! You're my 100th reviewer! That's so awesome! Thanks for reviewing! Enjoy the story!

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><p><strong>Benny POV<strong>

It feels rude to say 'I told you so' when Kitty is this upset, so I don't. Instead, I kiss the side of her head and murmur into hair, "Plan B."

And she's broken when she says, "What's plan B?" and I say "Come to my house," and she says, "Okay."

"Okay?" I tease.

She rolls her eyes. "It's a fabulous plan, Benjamin," she amends, but her voice still breaks so it's not much of a victory.

She shakes her head as she pulls herself off the ground, tired and sad and shattered. I take her hand wordlessly; she doesn't exactly look like she wants to talk about much right now.

It's a short walk, only a couple blocks, to my house, and we walk in companionable silence. It's not awkward, it's comfortable. We don't need words to communicate what needs to be said.

We're only three houses away when Kitty stops sniffling and mutters, "I hate the dark."

I stifle a laugh, "Why?"

"Because it feels like someone's watching me. I know it's silly, but don't you ever feel like that?"

To be fair, I didn't until she said it. But suddenly, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I felt eyes pricking into the back of my head. "Not until now," I complain, pulling her around the back of the house.

"Benny," she says softly. "Benny, the front door is in the front of your house."

I look at the ground. "Lost my key," I mutter. Kitty shakes her head at me, trying not to laugh. "And I don't wanna wake Mama," I add. Ever since Sam, my father, walked out, she's been workin' too hard. She deserves her sleep.

She's still twitching with silent laughter when I push open the window to my room. I usher Kitty in first, following quietly. Kitty glances down at her cutoffs.

"Uh, I hate to ask, but do you have anything I can sleep in?"

I smile and head over towards my dresser, grabbing a pair of boxers and an old baseball jersey. I toss them to her and she holds them up for inspection before raising an eyebrow at me.

"They're clean," I offer, not really understanding what she's getting at. She just smiles and shakes her head.

"Out," she grins.

I look up at her. "Excuse me?"

"I gotta change," she explains, pushing me out the door and shutting it.

"Are you forgetting the treehouse incident?"

Through the door, I hear a giggle. "Trying to."

She reappears in the doorway and pulls me back in, then twirls around for my approval as I take off my jersey, leaving me in my undershirt. I leave my shorts on, though, for obvious reasons. "The newest fashion," she tells me.

Naturally, I grin. "I like it," I tell her, catching her wrist and pulling her towards me until I feel her hot breath ghosting over my neck. She's rolled up the sleeves on the baseball jersey and the waistband on the boxers to make them fit, and when she stops twirling, the jersey falls just above halfway down her skinny thighs. There's something undeniably alluring about seeing Kitty in my clothes, and Kitty knows it.

She smiles softly. "Damn hormones," she says, leaning into my chest. I cup her face, guiding her eyes to align with mine, before surging down to connect our lips. I put my hands on her hips and draw her closer. Her hands twirl into the hair at the base of my neck and tug me further and further into her embrace.

It's like standing in the eye of a hurricane.

My head is spinning, like I'm dizzy and out of control, but my mind is focused on _Kitty, Kitty, Kitty_. Kitty's eyes, Kitty's hands, Kitty's hair, Kitty's mouth, Kitty's _lips_.

Have you ever been spinning really fast and stared at your hand and realized how clear your hand looks against the blurry background? That's how kissing Kitty feels. It's like I'm thinking a thousand things at once that all trace back to Kitty.

I pull back and lean my forehead against hers, smiling. "I think I love you," I blurt out suddenly, and something in her gaze changes so I hurry to justify it because I know she'll never think she's good enough if I don't. "I really do. I love the way you're not afraid to get dirty when you have to but you'll still paint your nails pink on the weekends. I love how you always try to do the right thing, and when you can't you do the next best thing. I love the way you're so strong even though you've lost everything. I love the way your eyes light up when you smile and I love when they cry because god, you're so strong in front of anyone else and I'm special because sometimes you're weak in front of me. I love the way you love your uncle even though he's hurt you, and I don't just mean physically.

"I love you for ever scar and imperfection inside and out.

"I love the way you stand up for the things you believe in, even if it comes at your own cost. I love the way you giggle one minute and shout the next and it's like a light switch because one second you're smiling and the next you're screaming and it's unpredictable and lovely and I love you."

Kitty's eyes are shining and her lips are trembling and I begin to worry that I overstepped the line I've been wary of since Day 1. What if I scared her? What if she doesn't want something serious?

Suddenly she launches herself at me, wrapping her legs around my waist and attacking my mouth all at once. I push her against the wall and she slips her tongue into my mouth and we kiss for _god knows how long_ until she pulls away, hands on my chest.

"It's only been a month, Benny. But for what it's worth, I think I love you, too," she beams, leaning in again. "And I never thought I'd admit this to you," she murmurs between kisses, "but my heart's been yours since day 2." I smile against her mouth and she smiles back. I pull her _that_ much closer and she kisses me deeper and deeper until it's just about too much. I pull away, not trusting myself to carry on much longer because I'm pretty sure we'd both regret it if we were to go too far. I look into her eyes, which have grown dark.

"Benny," she whines in a voice that's _oh my god_ as she tries to reconnect our lips. I laugh softly and turn my head away so she latches onto my neck instead. Involuntarily, my head rolls back and my eyes slide shut and _shit_. It's getting harder and harder to say no, but I get an idea. Smiling, I reach my hands around further so they rest on the side of her waist and begin to tickle her.

She giggles against my neck for a moment before pulling away from my neck. "Okay, okay. Truce," she gasps through stifled laughs. Studying my face, she sighs. "You're right. Not tonight. Now stop that, you're mom doesn't know I'm here yet."

"Mmm," I hum, pecking her on the lips one last time before falling onto the bed with Kitty still wrapped in my arms. We detangle ourselves slowly and she turns towards me so our noses brush against each other and slowly, blissfully, silently, we drift off to sleep.

**Ham's POV**

"Oh my god," DeNunez moans. "It's like we've lost our parents in a store. Benny _knew_ we were sleeping over at his house, tonight."

When we finally came around, all we heard was distant sounds of laughter and Kitty and Benny were nowhere to be found. We tried to follow them, but we never caught up. I roll my eyes.

"They're not anything like our parents, they're friggin' five year olds that wander off all the time. You know, like those gross little kids that moms get so worried about all the time."

I see Smalls rolling his eyes. "What?"

"I can't believe I let you guys talk me into eatin' that chaw," Smalls moans. Bertram starts to laugh, then stops, turning green again.

"Don't," I warn.

Kenny nods. "Or I'll pitch a fast one right in your face, Bertram." Bertram scowls at us.

"Hey, I brought the stuff, but y'all dipped all on your own. Don't go around blamin' me for your mistakes. Man, I wish I forgot about the stuff now."

A couple voices start protesting at once and I groan. "Shut up! All of you! Jesus Christ, you're _all_ five year olds."

Smalls shakes his head. "Let's just go find Benny and Kitty," he announces. Finally, someone has their head on straight.

We walk quietly, other than the occasional grumble about the chaw incident. First, we head to Kitty's house. Benny, being the overly-lovesick puppy he is probably insisted on walking her home. If we're lucky, we'll catch him on his way back.

When we get to the house, we peer inside the back window to find three rowdy, drunk guys clinking their beers together.

"So they're not at Kitty's house," I decide. "No way Mr. Lovey-Dovey would let his precious little girlfriend anywhere near that house."

I turn to walk away, but Kenny's eyebrows knit together. "Shouldn't we at least check?"

Glancing back one last time, I shake my head. "Nah, let's just leave them to drink their manly drinks of manliness. Benny's lovestruck, not stupid."

The boys all shrug and follow me. _Boo. Yah. I am their new leader. Watch out, Benny._

"Next best guess?" I ask.

"Benny's house," comes the chorus.

I nod. "And if they're not there we'll go ahead and sleep on Benny's floor anyways. That boy _owes_ us." The boys chuckle and we head to Benny's house, trading stories and tossing around the baseball.

Benny's house is only a short walk away, and we make it there soon enough.

As we head to the front door, Smalls stops us. "Let's check the window first. In fact, let's use the window either way. I don't think Benny's mom would be too thrilled with us losing her son if he's not there."

DeNunez blinks. "That…is some damn logic. Nice."

We head to the window, but in no way were any of us prepared for what we saw.

Benny had Kitty pinned against the wall and Kitty had her legs around Benny and they were _kissing _and it's by far the most disgusting thing I've ever seen. "Ew, ew, ew, EW EW EWWWW," all the boys scream, but Kitty and Benny keep kissing, apparently not hearing our (very manly, mind you) shrieks.

"Treehouse!" I scream, and we all take off running in the other direction. We don't stop until we get there, and we collapse on the floor, panting.

"I don't care…if they're…our parents or…five year olds," Smalls pants. "We…did not deserve…to witness…_that_."

The boys nod in agreement. "That was the most horrifying thing I've ever experienced," I mutter. "Oh my god, I think I'm gonna hurl again."

We all take our time ridding ourselves of the image and then sit in a circle. "All in favor of never mentioning that again, say aye," I announce.

"Aye," comes the resounding response.

There's a long silence.

"So what d'you think they're doing now?"

"BERTRAM!"

**Kitty POV**

The next morning, I wake up wrapped in Benny's arms, our noses touching. Not a bad way to wake up at all.

I remember when I would run into my parents room when I was really young and find them laying like this and my dad would smile and pick me up and hang me upside down and my mom…_shit._

Mom.

Benny's mom still doesn't know I'm here. What if she comes in to wake Benny up? Oh my god, I'm _in his clothes_.

This whole situation looks bad. As in _bad_ bad. How many mothers would be okay finding a girl sleeping in their son's bed with said son's clothes on? Oh my god, oh my god, _oh my god_.

"Benny," I whisper.

He hums lazily, blinking awake and smiling when he sees me. "I could get used to this," he grins. He leans in to peck me on the lips, but I pull away quickly.

"_Benny_," I stress. "I have to get _out of here_."

Benny groans. "Why?"

"Your mom doesn't know I'm here!"

Suddenly, Benny's wide awake. "Shit."

"I know."

Benny sits up. "Where are your clothes?" he asks.

"I don't know," I panic. "They're not here."

"Actually," comes a third voice from the door. "They're right here."

Benny and I turn to find Ham _smirking_ at us. He's holding my cutoffs and my t-shirt and he's grinning like he just won the lottery. "We kept your mom away from your room," he adds cheerily. Tossing the clothes at me, he gives us a meaningful look. "You're welcome."

Benny exhales loudly. "Thanks, man. You're a life-saver. And sorry about last night."

Ham gets a mischievous little smile on his face that can only mean trouble. "Get changed," he orders, and he turns and walks away.

I shove Benny out of the room to get changed, and after doing so, I go to meet the boys in the living room.

When I walk in, Benny's crimson and all the boys are trying to hold back laughter.

"They saw us. Through the window," Benny offers. Just like that, the boys dissolve into laughter. I glare at them, and they sorta settle, before Ham tells me mock-solemnly, "We just hope you had the common sense not to take it too far."

Ham collapses into giggles, and I mutter, "Would have," which is greeted by shocked silence. Benny gives me a look.

"Would _not_ have."

Ham just look between us, bewildered. "_He's_ holding out on _you_? You perv," he laughs.

"Who's calling who a perv," I holler. "Y'all spied on us through a window."

"Believe me," Smalls tells us, "if we knew what we were gonna see, we _would not have looked through the stupid window_."

"Yeah, yeah, it was terrifying," Yeah-Yeah shudders.

"Horrifying," Kenny agrees.

"Disgusting," Timmy adds.

Repeat nods. "Disgusting."

"Worse than watching your parents kiss," Bertram finishes. Benny and I glare at all of them, and an awkward silence ensues.

"So," Ham claps, breaking the silence. "Movie day? I need to see King Kong again, because a certain Little League team ruined it last time."

I shrug. "Movie night, please. More fun that way."

They all agree.

Since the boys don't have the money to buy a baseball (and damn, it's hot out today), we spend an uneventful day at Benny's house. I try to teach the boys to make cookies, which results in a flour fight, four showers, and me doing all the work. I leave them on the counter for Benny's mom before we head out for the movie.

"Can't believe y'all are making me see this movie again," I mutter.

Kenny laughs and bumps my shoulder. "You love it." I grin back at him but don't say anything.

As the theatre comes into view, Ham walks up beside Kenny. "Just _try_, for all our sakes, not to get taken over by a Little League team, yeah?"

I roll my eyes and turn to the other side where Benny has an arm wrapped around my waist. "I think it's time they got girlfriends, don't you think? High school romance and all that."

Ham shoots me a withering glare. "Do not. Play. Matchmaker," he tells me cautiously. I open my mouth to respond, but find that Ham is busy ordering the tickets.

The movie is exactly how I remember it (surpise!) but the boys all watch with rapt attention. They cheer and boo and generally annoy most of the audience, clapping wildly when it's over.

As we leave the theater, they grow serious. "You really think he died in the end?" Scotty inquires. I roll my eyes and open my mouth to explain that since he's not technically real, he can't die, but the boys start talking before I can.

"Who?" Benny asks, and I roll my eyes again.

"King Kong…" Scotty all but whispers.

Squints laughs. "Not possible," he states. "He's so big that fallin' off the Empire State's just like us fallin' off a roof…he's alive."

Scotty processes that and tilts hi head to the side like a lost puppy. "So whadda you think happened to him?"

The boys scratch their heads and rub their chins as thoughts are thunk. "Most likely," Timmy concludes, which doesn't answer any question. I wait for him to continue but he never does.

"Hey, guys?" Scotty speaks up again. "Has anyone really ever seen the Beast?"

The gang all stops, except Scotty who keeps walking until he realizes no one else is coming. "Look, Smalls," Squints begins patronizingly. "You ever seen King Kong for real? In person, I mean?"

"No, but-"

"-well he's real, right?" Squints continues.

Scotty shrugs. "Yeah, a' course." I resist the urge to explain that King Kong is just a movie as I listen to Squints' twisted logic.

"And he's still out there somewhere, right?"

"Yeah."

Squints nods his head conclusively. "See there's just some things that are." I've just about had enough, and open my mouth, but Squints ignores me and keeps plowing through his explanation. "Ya know, stuff that it's just better not to talk about…'cause thinkin' about it just makes it worse. No one has to see the Beast to know he's there."

Scotty stiffens as a horrified thought seems to occur to him. "You don't think that the Beast is really…"

The boys stand is stricken silence, and slowly realize that they're standing outside Mr. Myrtle's house.

"You guys are ridiculous," I say flatly as I start walking again. The boys follow me as denial kicks in.

"King Kong? Naw!" I hear Squints laugh.

Ham adds, "God, that is stupid."

"No stinkin' way," announces Bertram.

As Benny comes up next to me he turns and walks backward to face the boys. "Oh boy," he sighs. "Had me feelin' like an idiot for a minute there." He takes my hand and I roll my eyes again for what seems like the millionth time that night. This whole conversation is just makin' me wanna swing a baseball bat at something.

"Whew, what a relief," they laugh.

Suddenly, Ham speaks up. "Hey, who d'ya think would win in a fight? King Kong or Godzilla?"

"Godzilla," Bertram laughs as if it's obvious.

Benny shakes his head. "King Kong," he shoots back incredulously.

"'Zilla!"

"Kong would kick his ass!"

"No way, 'Zilla's got that fire breath stuff. He'd fry the monkey!"

"I say Kong!"

Yeah-Yeah holds up his hands in surrender. "Yeah, yeah, wait a sec. Maybe they'll do a movie someday and we'll find out."

"Yeah, that'd be cool," the gang concedes.

I purse my lips. "We should probably get you boys in bed. You're starting to sound crazy." As we reach the corner, I turn to Benny as if I'm gonna say goodnight. "And by the way," I add, loudly enough for everyone to hear. "Godzilla would totally win."

As I skip away, smiling, half the boys cheer and the other half groan. "You can't really believe that!" Benny calls after me, disbelieving.

But, you know, he does have the fire breath stuff.

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><p><strong>AN: Did you like it? I hope you did! Drop a review? Pwease? I'll love you forever and forever...  
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